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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26200849">Project Miracle: Book One</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/CashlinSnow/pseuds/CashlinSnow'>CashlinSnow</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Sonic the Hedgehog (Archie Comic), Sonic the Hedgehog (Comics), Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW Comics), Sonic the Hedgehog (Video Games), Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Central City, Chaos Emeralds, G.U.N. - Freeform, Gen, Other, Station Square, Tornado, gun - Freeform</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 07:21:43</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>116,182</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26200849</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/CashlinSnow/pseuds/CashlinSnow</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Two G.U.N. scientists have been laboring over Project Miracle for a decade--a project that's supposed to heal millions of people from incurable diseases. But when the time finally comes to bring the project to life, a disastrous miscalculation happens. In the wake of the devastating repercussions of the project, Isolena Marshall, one of the scientific leaders of the project, takes control of the entire situation. Her heart hardens and her resolve drives her to form a dangerous alliance with Eggman, while using her own son to ensure the project succeeds. After Rouge and Shadow discover what Project Miracle actually is and decide to destroy it, they realize the circumstances are far more complex than they thought. The chaos emeralds have become unstable, as Isolena has cut one of them and used their power for the project's purposes, and Rouge realizes she needs a solid team to counter the insane scientist and Eggman.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Amy Rose/Shadow the Hedgehog, Shadow the Hedgehog/Amy the Hedgehog, Shadow/Amy</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>30</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. One Month</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This is a mostly IDW setting fic, but I take bits from Archieverse. My OCs are copyrighted to me: Dylan, Isolena, Richard, Jameson, Miss Loveswirl, Berry. Please do not use them anywhere or claim ownership of them. Everything else isn't mine. Rated T for violence, blood/graphic scenes, personal hardships, and mental+emotional trauma. There is slow building ShadowxAmy shipping, a bit of cuddles, a little kissing, but not the primary focus of this fic.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    
<p></p><div class="center">
  <p>
    
    <br/>
    <span class="small">Image of Dylan Marshall by SweetShadow</span>
  </p>
</div><p>The voices were at first indistinct, but she knew the tones well enough to know who was speaking. They were stressed, a human male's voice, tenor, speaking quickly; and a human woman, mid-range, smooth almost like butter, but with a strain of agitation she was barely containing. The two were bent over before panels and tapping on screens at a fast pace.</p>
<p>Then the female slouched, her back turned away from the wall of monitors and schematics of something slowly revolving before them. A thing. A serious of diagrams. A set of something that looked like chains of DNA slowly revolving.</p>
<p>The male tapped into the strands on the screen and gestured to a part of it. To wit, the female turned, slowly, let out a physical gesture of weariness by her bent back, and then swiftly left the laboratory.</p>
<p>For a few more minutes, Rouge kept her position up in the air vent, watching the single overworked scientist plunge onward further into the night. He certainly was a determined human! She'd seen her fair share of zealous scientists in her years of working for GUN. This man, still relatively young, was an interesting exception as far as the length of time he'd diligently worked at this single project. He hadn't turned his attention to anything else. For him, and then the woman later, it had always, only, ever been this one project.</p>
<p>Just, what that project was, Rouge hadn't fully learned. Not that she was particularly interested in the actual substance of the project. Just, this man—there had been something in his sparkling, youthful eyes a handful of years ago that had impressed her when she'd first joined GUN. Was that spark still there? Rarely did Rouge have opportunity to draw near enough to truly see if it was or not.</p>
<p>After all, he was a GUN scientist; and she, a GUN agent, was technically on his side. Therefore, she hadn't pried into the project in any significant way. Oh, GUN held a vast Bible of spells and secrets, though. At times, Rouge wondered if GUN was as good-intentioned as they spouted to the media, and therefore to the public.</p>
<p>So she'd taken to, as she told herself, observing this man and his co-worker, his wife, as they pressed forth through their project. They'd fought, laughed, cried, comforted the other. And yet-</p>
<p>Were they any closer or not to the successful result they were so painfully giving their hours of life to? Why did she still skulk about after-hours watching them? She wasn't the same innocent GUN agent as she'd been years ago when she'd first started. That these two touted a supposedly genuine and optimistically simplistic goal of doing something good should have felt more like a laugh to her now.</p>
<p>Rouge was sullied by the realities she'd been through. No more was she the new agent who'd read through the rose-colored GUN briefings and eaten up every word. She knew better now, painfully so. People were never as clean as they presented—or even as they told themselves.</p>
<p>Yet, she crept back week after week, curious, hoping subconsciously that these two scientists were true people that would see their ideas to fruition. Whatever they were doing, she hoped they succeeded.</p>
<p>Rouge watched the poor man groan and turn the monitors off. He picked up some tablets and placed them in a locked drawer. And with a weary sigh, watching him take his leave, Rouge stood and slid away through the vents, back through locks and encryptions that she easily bypassed with her high-ranking access codes. No one at GUN knew she'd been watching this project for years.</p>
<p>If those two scientists were as good as she hoped, whatever they were striving for could only be something good.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~</p>
<p>Now that the hours were longer and the days accordingly warmer, with blooms bursting, the sun shining, and puffy cumulus clouds inching across the sky, he'd had more time to walk down to the beach and feel the sand between his toes.</p>
<p>His days were about the same: wake, school, homework, beach, and baking in-between that. Oh, and look after his chao Berry. His friend.</p>
<p>Not that Dylan could complain or feel melancholy. He tried not to focus on the things he couldn't do and improve daily with the talents and things he could do. There were precious few of those, so Dylan had devoted himself to them wholeheartedly.</p>
<p>Berry fluttered around him, landing on his shoulder.</p>
<p>Dylan picked up the pace to get to the bus stop. He'd hurried to finish his homework so he could spend even a few more minutes at the beach. When the days lengthened, he missed less sunsets. The beginning and ending of the day were his favorite times.</p>
<p>"Are you okay, Berry?" Dylan poked at his little friend.</p>
<p>Berry chirped happily and stood up, grabbing at Dylan's choppy, dirty blonde hair for footing.</p>
<p>They stood at the station waiting for a couple minutes, before a large semi-truck came barreling down the road at a rather accelerated pace. As it half flew by, Dylan closed his eyes. Dust and road debris wasn't something he liked to have bothering his eyes.</p>
<p>Then his shoulder felt light.</p>
<p>Dylan gasped, "Berry?"</p>
<p>His chao was gone.</p>
<p>Dylan tried not to panic. He whirled about and—there! Berry was helplessly fluttering about in the air over the road! The tractor trailer's blast of wind must have blown his friend away!</p>
<p>"Berry!" Dylan made to rush out right into traffic.</p>
<p>"Kid, are you insane?" One of the strangers at the bus station grabbed Dylan by the arm, yanking him back. "It's just a chao!"</p>
<p>"But—no! That's my friend! Let go!"</p>
<p>Of course, the man only clenched onto Dylan harder. As the teenager struggled to break free, the lights changed and oncoming traffic commenced at a quickly-accelerating approach. He swallowed, protesting harder. His poor little chao had not only been blown into the air above the street, but had hit a stop sign and had fallen right onto the pavement senseless!</p>
<p>Desperate, Dylan turned to try to do anything to get free. Then, another blast of wind and some sort of sound burst past him. He and the other people nearly dropped. That wasn't the same type as cars blowing by too quickly. It had gone by in a second, if that, with nothing left to show for it.</p>
<p>Completely stupefied, Dylan found that the man had released him. He struggled to his feet, turning in agony to the street to see what had become of his precious friend.</p>
<p>But Berry wasn't squashed in the road. The little blue chao wasn't anywhere in the road at all. Had some horrible car run him over and peeled him off the hot pavement to who knew where?</p>
<p>The thought brought tears to Dylan's eyes. He was about to have a breakdown, when his chao was suddenly presented to him! On impulse, Dylan gasped and clutched the little creature against his chest, unable to stop a stream of tears from running down his face.</p>
<p>"Who?" He looked over and down a little. A blue hedgehog was standing there, smiling, observing how Berry snuggled against the boy with much reciprocated love.</p>
<p>"Are you okay now?" The blue hedgehog asked, a bit concerned but overly energetic in tone.</p>
<p>The hedgehog's enthusiastic demeanor encouraged Dylan, "Yes. Are you the one that saved Berry?"</p>
<p>"Yep! Looks like I got here just in time!"</p>
<p>"I—thank you so much! You don't know what this means to me."</p>
<p>"No," the hedgehog's smile slipped just a fraction. "I think I understand. Well, I have to go. C'ya!"</p>
<p>And with another shocking burst, he was gone in a blue streak that left Dylan and the other travelers stunned silent. But then Dylan overheard those about him discussing the event, with some exclaiming that blue hedgehog was one they'd seen more than once on the news before. The hedgehog's name was Sonic. He always zoomed to and fro in that expeditious manner.</p>
<p>Dylan recalled also having read news articles and watched some video about that hedgehog, too. And some others, but the details were hazy. Such fast activity didn't concern him personally that much. Therefore, when the bus arrived, he boarded with a renewed heart of contentment and sat near a back window, with Berry propped up so he could look out at Central City.</p>
<p>Their journey didn't take long. Dylan exited to a soft flow of evening wind, sweet as flowers, and to a spread of lovely beach waiting just for them. The sun was almost ready to set. Few other people were slowly walking about, waiting also for the brilliant burst of the ending of the day to begin.</p>
<p>Dylan comfortably walked down the gravel path and stepped out atop the sand. He came before a long, thick piece of driftwood that had no doubt landed there many decades ago, and there he sat, with Berry in his lap. This was their ritual. Here, he took his shoes and socks off and pressed his naked feet into the sand. It felt so good, that he shut his eyes and felt the wind and imagined what things could have been like if not for his condition. Just for a minute. But then he stopped such vain things and opened his eyes to the pleasure of sunbursts rising over a spill of gold and pink.</p>
<p>Whenever he saw that sky, Dylan knew everything would be fine.</p>
<p>They lingered silently for a few minutes. Then, a happy laugh tingled his ears. To the right, down near the water's edge, a pink hedgehog and a little cream-toned rabbit were skipping together. He'd seen them a few times before, always together, always eating candy or talking about silly nothings.</p>
<p>Like many of the cars, trees, and other people he saw in specific places at specific times, they'd become routine fixtures. And he was probably routine for them, too.</p>
<p>They eventually passed and their happy laughter faded. What would it have been like not to worry about cutting his legs or feet, so that he could have enjoyed the things others his age took for granted?</p>
<p>Well, whenever he started down that mental path, Dylan just saddened himself.</p>
<p>The sunset was starting to fade and the brightest of stars were twinkling into the sky.</p>
<p>"Let's go, Berry. I'll make you a mini cupcake like I did last week. Does that sound tasty?"</p>
<p>Berry squealed and rubbed his face against Dylan's cheek.</p>
<p>Dylan smiled and walked up the beach back to the bus stop. From here it was go home, take a bath, check his body to make sure he hadn't been cut anywhere considerable, and then make plans for a weekend of baking. Now and then, his parents would find a few minutes to come home and talk with him, but those times seemed to be growing rarer as he got older. That was yet one more thing Dylan wished would change. His parents were slowly, but consistently more tired and stressed as the months drifted by.</p>
<p>He worried about them. But, as they were GUN scientists, he really couldn't ask them just what about their job was draining them. Actually, Dylan knew next to nothing about anything they did, and it was supposed to be like that. Classified everything.</p>
<p>Berry fluttered around him and sat on his head as Dylan opened the door to his house and stepped inside.</p>
<p>"Want to soak in the sink while I take a bath?"</p>
<p>Berry clapped his hands together in happiness.</p>
<p>Dylan chuckled. Of course Berry wanted to do that. Almost every night, the little soft creature would splash about in the bathroom sink in nice, warm water, while Dylan stepped into the shower. The little guy was such a wonderful friend for him! Dylan would do anything for him. To give Berry anything he could. To stretch out the days on mobius that he could have with such a giving, innocent soul. It was his delight to pamper the chao in every way he could.</p>
<p>The two went about their bathing ritual and Dylan dried his friend off. Then he placed Berry on a soft cushion on the kitchen counter and opened a large three-ring binder. There was nothing but organized recipes of any pastry imaginable.</p>
<p>"Should I go for cakes, cupcakes, cookies, tortes, rolls, or something else this weekend? What do you think my social media fans would like this time? Vanilla, strawberry, cherry, chocolate, something else? Dipped fruit or chocolate bark or truffles?"</p>
<p>Berry was silent.</p>
<p>Dylan tilted his head, "How about I close my eyes and randomly open the recipe book to some page and that will be it?"</p>
<p>To that, Berry made a happy gurgle.</p>
<p>Dylan did just that, peering down at a chocolate cream-filled cupcake recipe with swirled pink frosting and blue sprinkles. "Okay, cupcakes it is! Glad that monumental decision is over with—whew! Let's go chill for a while. Catch up on social media comments."</p>
<p>Patisserie was one of the very few things Dylan was very talented at, and he knew it. Not that he was prideful per say, but he was proud that he had something he could do. What with mediocre grades, low self esteem, and a lack of athleticism, if not for this, he'd just be a boring, skinny teenage boy who had to watch out lest he leak blood.</p>
<p>That's what hemophilia was all about.</p>
<p>"Check that bad luck: the son of two scientists has to be careful so he doesn't hurt himself. So much for anything aggressive, like touch sports," so Dylan had chuckled sourly some years ago. But it couldn't be helped.</p>
<p>"Look at this comment," he smiled, showing the phone to Berry. "This girl really likes my photos. Think I should follow her advice and open a shop after high school? What—you do?" He blinked at the chao. "But shouldn't I go to a patisserie school first? You don't think I need to? Aww! So sweet of you!"</p>
<p>He lay on his bed and browsed through hundreds of comments of his delicious sweets. The photo account Dylan had on PicSnap always cheered him up. When he baked, he took pictures and uploaded them. It was unintentional, that he'd become so popular, but with two years of posts and over five hundred thousand followers currently, Dylan had been so encouraged that he'd improved in the kitchen expeditiously.</p>
<p>For a little while longer, he perused, and then his eyes grew heavy and he drifted away.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~</p>
<p>At sunset the next evening, Rouge thought back to how intensely upset those two scientists had looked. Sure, they'd had their expected share of upsets, but something about this felt new, felt heavier, felt oppressive. But, why did she care, again? She should let it all slide. It wasn't her business.</p>
<p>A black thing slowly passed before her. Rouge was thinking about those scientists too much to notice.</p>
<p>"What's on your mind?"</p>
<p>"Hm?" She slid her fist from her cheek and glanced over. Shadow had come up to sit next to her. "It's nothing of importance."</p>
<p>He was swiping through some text on a GUN tablet. Probably his current orders. Routine. And as he did so, the slightest sigh dropped from his mouth, but he expressed no outer emotion to whatever he was skimming through.</p>
<p>"Don't you have a mission right now?"</p>
<p>"Actually, no. Every now and then, a girl's gotta take a breather."</p>
<p>Shadow flickered a fraction of his eyes at her, then returned to the translucent, turquoise tablet with the white text.</p>
<p>Rouge stared around her at the usual setting of the five-star hotel's private suite. GUN had set her and Shadow up here in order to keep them conveniently close by in Central City. It worked. She and Shadow technically had a separate room a piece, which shared a living space. This is where they relaxed, talked, bothered each other—when they saw each other that was, and such happy reunions were becoming continually more infrequent. Usually, she enjoyed unwinding here with Shadow. But she just—those scientists—and she was bored.</p>
<p>"Omega's still off on that mission of his own?"</p>
<p>"Yes. He won't be back for months, if not longer," Shadow tapped the screen more text loaded. Rouge heard the almost imperceptible growl of agitation he made at the presentation of nothing but dull, horrendous, mind-numbing text. Most likely required research GUN had sent him for whatever his latest mission was.</p>
<p>The three had ended their last joint mission months ago. Then Omega had been presented a mission of his own. A first, a shocking display of trust on GUN's part, and even more stunning, he'd readily accepted it. And then she and Shadow had also taken solo missions. At first, she'd enjoyed the flexibility of doing things completely alone as she often used to do. No babysitting or explaining things to a junior or waiting on the slower partner.</p>
<p>Now the renewed freedom in her work was boring, as well.</p>
<p>Then, intruding in her musings with that smooth voice of his, Shadow asked again, "What's on your mind?"</p>
<p>"Why do you think something's on my mind?"</p>
<p>"There's always something in there."</p>
<p>"Well, I'm glad you think so! Wouldn't want you to think that my skull is empty."</p>
<p>"Rouge," he smoothly spoke. "I know that, at least, you have jewels in there."</p>
<p>"My!" Rouge fake gasped and smirked. "Was that a joke? You?"</p>
<p>"Nothing is beyond the ultimate life form," Shadow's mouth twitched in a smirk, which he suppressed like his life depended on it. But he turned his tablet off and lay his head back against the plush couch.</p>
<p>Rouge knew her compatriot well. It had been—and still was—one of her secret pleasures to watch his inner growth. Still moody, still uptight, still secretive, he'd nonetheless relaxed enough to loosen up and be a bit open to a select few. She was one of them. And she also knew when to press buttons, when not to, and what buttons to press.</p>
<p>So, instead of waiting for him to prompt her again, and knowing that he putting the tablet down was such a mark that he was waiting, she leaned on her hand again and blinked at him, "Have you heard of Project Miracle?</p>
<p>"No," he simply responded.</p>
<p>That was also his way of telling her to explain. If he wasn't interested, he would have made some rude remark.</p>
<p>Rouge passed him a fleeting smirk, "I'm honestly not intimately familiar with it; however, GUN's been funding it for almost a decade. The two scientists in charge are a married couple. They've been dedicated to it all these years, and yet-"</p>
<p>"You seem to be more familiar with it than you think you are. Why are you bothered by it since it's not even one of your cases?"</p>
<p>"That's the thing. I'm not sure why. I'd just really like to see the project work out, but lately, something's changed. I think the project may fail."</p>
<p>"How can you say that, when you also said you don't even know what it's about?"</p>
<p>Rouge exhaled in a rare moment of vulnerable outward agitation. Shadow made no remark to her emotional display. She appreciated that about him when she didn't want him to react; and she disliked it about him when she did.</p>
<p>"Okay, so I've been watching them for a while."</p>
<p>"Spying," he let off a little chuckle.</p>
<p>"You could define it like that," she turned fully to him and smirked. "I like to think I've just been a silent supporter. But-"</p>
<p>Just then, her communicator flashed. Rouge had to take it, for it was always, only GUN or a mission partner, "This is Rouge?"</p>
<p>"Rouge, we need you to get us a chaos emerald right away. Any emerald. Then bring it to GUN HQ."</p>
<p>"A chaos emerald?" She darted her widened eyes to Shadow, suppressing a tone of glee. "I am going to ask, what for?"</p>
<p>"It's for a project."</p>
<p>"Well, of course!" She rolled her eyes and Shadow actually smirked quite a bit. "But, which one? Don't act like you can't tell me. I'm sure I have high enough clearance to know—and I do want to know. I'm not in the game of being a blind lackey."</p>
<p>There was a pause, then the man on the other end spoke, "Acknowledged. Your clearance is high enough. This mission is for Project Miracle. We'll send you a debriefing after the call."</p>
<p>Speechless, Rouge whipped her eyes to Shadow. He'd crossed his arms when that interesting bit of coincidental information had come up, but his eyes were slightly narrowed.</p>
<p>Recovering, Rouge answered, "Well, you want me to go find a big gem and get it by any means I think is required? And for Project Miracle? I like the name of that project. I'll do it and will head out tonight!"</p>
<p>"Good. Agent out."</p>
<p>"Is this fate or what?" Rouge hopped off the couch, energetic and self-satisfied.</p>
<p>Shadow rolled his eyes, "Fate is nonsense. However, nothing happens by chance."</p>
<p>"And the difference between the two is?" She asked, without looking for an answer. "You're such a philosopher, Shadow! Who taught you to speak like that?"</p>
<p>He only sneered, "Want to trade missions with me? Yours sounds more exciting."</p>
<p>"No way, junior!" Laughing, Rouge walked off.</p>
<p>Shadow waited until he couldn't see her; and then he waited yet more until his sensitive ears could no longer hear the soft clattering of her boots in the building. Rouge was more than a tolerable colleague to him, though he'd not yet learned how to bypass his own discomfort to admit those things fully to himself. She was even companionable at times. However, he only let himself enjoy a genuine smile after she'd left.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~</p>
<p>She slammed the glass down and quite a bit of the water spilled out on the marble countertop. With a pained sigh and back aching from lack of sleep, she slid her fingers slowly over the counter and gripped the edge.</p>
<p>"What if they don't find a chaos emerald in time? It's not like you can just call one and it will come to you like a dog!"</p>
<p>"Isolena, please. They'll get one in time. Things are going according to the time table! I also have to run some more blood match tests, so a couple days should work out fine."</p>
<p>"Nonsense. You've run over a hundred tests. Why'd GUN wait so long to approve our requests for this stage? Everything depends on it! The specimen won't last but another month—max!"</p>
<p>There was a sudden silence, a discomfiting few seconds in which Isolena glared up at her husband's face to see if he was withholding something from her. He wouldn't look back at her, and she knew she was right. The look of guilt had whitened his already pale skin from the hours of isolation in their lab.</p>
<p>"Richard," she sternly spoke.</p>
<p>He eyed her, then stared down, again, into their sink, as if everything and nothing were on his mind.</p>
<p>"GUN's been strapped for cash for almost a decade now. They've shuttered dozens of projects—some very promising! How was it that we got a sudden bulk donation, and at just this critical phase?"</p>
<p>"Maybe GUN was holding back?"</p>
<p>"Please, Richard," she stepped up before him. "Where'd that money really come from?"</p>
<p>"An anonymous donor," he quickly responded, still not allowing himself to turn to her. "The money was marked specifically for Project Miracle, so GUN sent it directly to us."</p>
<p>Isolena rotated her body so her back pressed against the counter. Before her on the island sat a lovely three-tier dish of cupcakes with layers of swirled yellow and blue frosting. She absently examined the way the frosting formed a sort of circular road littered with the trash of sprinkles and candy.</p>
<p>"So then GUN was able to send an agent to get us a chaos emerald, because we somehow, mysteriously, finally had the finances to do so," she stated flatly.</p>
<p>Richard nodded, "One of the best agents. We should have an emerald, at the latest, in two days."</p>
<p>Another pause. Then, the front door opened and a teenage boy with a backpack slung over his shoulders entered. A chao hovered near him. He dropped his luggage and scratched at his head, then noticing his parents standing in the dimly-lit kitchen, forms still, observing him with masks of some weird expression that made him uncomfortable.</p>
<p>"Uh—I didn't expect you both to be home tonight?"</p>
<p>"Something came up," Richard broke from the counter to go to his son. As he hugged the skinny frame, he sighed, "Have you been doing okay, Dylan?"</p>
<p>"Yeah. Same stuff."</p>
<p>"That's a relief. Can you give your mom and I another minute? I'd like to catch up with you, but we were in the middle of a work discussion."</p>
<p>"Oh."</p>
<p>Work discussion meant Dylan always had to make himself scarce. Work discussions were confidential. Everything about his parents' jobs were. But every time Dylan heard it, he felt excluded, even though it couldn't be helped. Perhaps, he just wished his parents would leave work at work, and when they came home, would be able to relax and just be his parents.</p>
<p>So much for that. "Sure. I'll be in my room," Dylan passed them a courageous smile and took Berry with him down the hall.</p>
<p>When his door closed, Isolena approached her husband, speaking a little low, "Who's the anonymous donor, Richard?"</p>
<p>"I can't say. I promised I wouldn't."</p>
<p>She huffed impatiently, "I'm not some scientist lackey. I'm your equal in rank on this project. We agreed we'd completely trust each other. So, tell me."</p>
<p>"I-" He sighed heavily. His wife was a hard, stern woman. She didn't often raise her voice to the point of yelling or screaming. Sometimes though, he wished she would. The tone she'd mastered years ago and was using on him now—ice and stone—was almost terrifying at times. Her expression of determined winter bore on him. "This is confidential. You can't tell anyone, or he'll withdraw all the funds."</p>
<p>"Of course I understand," she merely responded.</p>
<p>Richard swallowed, "It's Dr. Eggman."</p>
<p>Isolena didn't speak for some seconds. She kept her stance and almost bored look. Then she blinked and altered her pose with a disgusted, "That psychopath? How and why would you ever take anything that narcissist imbecile would offer?"</p>
<p>"He had conditions," Richard admitted.</p>
<p>Isolena sat down on the couch, "Of course. What are they?"</p>
<p>"After we complete the project successfully, he wants an entire copy of everything."</p>
<p>"What?" Her voice rose a second in surprise. "I may not be Eggman's psychologist, and I certainly don't have the pleasure that sassy brat Sonic has in seeing the man up close on a daily basis, but I know enough from what I've been exposed to of him in the media to feel two things about this: first, this isn't the typical fodder for Eggman. This is a medical project. Not a power-grabbing expedition for one of his erroneous world domination schemes. But second, despite that, I know he'll try to use our research for his own malicious plans. Richard, you have to withdraw his funding!"</p>
<p>"I've thought about the potential repercussions, but even if Eggman had a copy of everything, we'd still have the project—we could still save countless lives with it! So what about Eggman!"</p>
<p>Isolena was speechless for a few more, lengthy seconds, studying her husband's face to see if he truly believed his own words. There was nothing but sincerity and hope there. He still felt the same way he had over a decade ago when he'd launched the project. She'd gone along, believing in him and his good heart, for his intentions had truly been to help sick people heal.</p>
<p>That desire had touched her. Though Richard was a bit gullible because of his sincerity, Isolena admired and loved him for it. She'd put up with many ups and downs through their decade of stress; they'd neglected their son and both carried guilt about it. But she'd always told herself this was worth it. With this, they'd also be able to heal their son's hemophilia.</p>
<p>Yet, now? Eggman? She was more than horrified. Accepting anything from that person was like announcing the entire project had failed.</p>
<p>"What if Eggman blackmails GUN? Takes the research and destroys the lab? Destroys all our digital backups? Then sells the product for a mass profit? Who could get the medicine then?"</p>
<p>Richard immediately responded, proof that he'd thought about that, "We'll save the intranet copies to external disks and send him corrupted data. Then we'll tell GUN what happened."</p>
<p>She fell silent. This was so risky, but Isolena couldn't let everything fall apart now. They were so close—it was incredible! Maybe things would work out. She had to support her husband! What were all their sacrifices if she just abandoned it all here?</p>
<p>She sat closer to him, "Okay, but saying I don't like this is a gross understatement."</p>
<p>"I know," he half-whispered. "I'm so sorry. There was no other way I could see. And like you said, the specimen can't hold out longer than a month. But if things go according to schedule, that's far more time than we need. It all depends on that chaos emerald!"</p>
<p>~~~~~~~</p>
<p>Rouge hummed a bit, fingering through a magazine of sparkling, shining things and the women attached to them. Silk gowns and satin gloves and more than enough bedazzle to interest her. She had a few minutes to kill on this flight, so why not put in some research? As she flipped through, she stopped at a full-body glamour shot of a thin, ginger woman in a little black dress, posing rather boldly. The woman and her getup wasn't particularly interesting. It was the bulky, golden gem she foolishly held out to the camera—to the entire world.</p>
<p>"So, Miss Loveswirl the singer sent a team of archaeologists out to the ruins of an echidna city and found a chaos emerald? Couldn't keep such a treasure to yourself, darling?"</p>
<p>Rouge ripped the page off, folded it, and stuffed it down her chest. "A ditsy fool and her wealth are soon parted! Oh, looks like my flight's over!"</p>
<p>This would be far too easy. Rouge slid out of her seat and exited the jet. Without bothering with the required airport regulations, she jumped up and flew off over the massive structure. All the while, she smirked and chuckled inwardly.</p>
<p>"Oh, honey, why ever did you think walking around with a chaos emerald was a good idea? I guess I give you too many points to assume you thought at all. Let's see how you handle it when your jewel disappears at your party tonight!"</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. The Golden Chaos Emerald</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Rouge checked her reflection in the hand mirror one last time, "Flawless, of course!" She winked at herself and put the item back in her clutch.</p>
<p>Well, Project Miracle sure sounded swell, legitimate, interesting! As was GUN's nature, they didn't reveal some of the gritty details to her. Even Rouge's high clearance had seniority limitations, but she'd read enough in the debriefing document to satisfy her—for the moment.</p>
<p>Project Miracle had begun right around a decade ago by then junior scientist Richard Marshall, who had listed with his name, even then, a slew of impressive credentials. It appeared he was a hematologist, biologist, and microbiologist packaged in one. For a junior scientist to propose their own project to GUN had been very impressive; for GUN to have approved it was still almost unheard of! His current title was Director. Rouge had nodded her approval of such a man.</p>
<p>And his wife, also an accomplished biologist and mineralogist, had joined him. She'd worked tirelessly with him on both the actual project and with project funding pursuits. Project Miracle's purpose was to grow some sort of thing the debriefing referred to as the specimen that would be able to heal people of any endless assortment of illnesses. Hence why she had been recruited to fetch a chaos emerald. Apparently, the magic soup had to consist of human blood, hedgehog blood, and a chaos emerald.</p>
<p>Though Rouge wondered just how those three unrelated and honestly disgusting things could mix together, it was not her concern. Once she'd read the entire purpose of the project was to save life, she had felt exceedingly satisfied that her suppositions about the Marshalls had been correct.</p>
<p>"After all, GUN is a peace-keeping organization. It seems appropriate they'd extend their pursuits to something that could improve quality of life for the world."</p>
<p>She stepped out of a limousine and glanced about, "Park at the bottom of the hill. Away from any other cars. Then wait for me. I shouldn't be long."</p>
<p>The driver, a GUN soldier from a local branch, nodded and drove away.</p>
<p>She was just slightly late, technically, due to her tight schedule of catching a flight and showing up here all within the span of a few evening hours of one day. But such was the pace at times for a woman in Rouge's profession. She enjoyed it.</p>
<p>Quite a few people were still drifting about the long, overly glamorous entrance of the estate. Formal affair. Rouge had prepared accordingly, attired in a charcoal, form-fitting gown that ran almost down to her ankles. Almost, but not quite, so her pink stilettos would show properly. A chunky diamond bracelet adorned her wrist, with a thick, matching diamond choker. With her trademark casual confidence and an immaculate step, Rouge walked past all sorts of who's who and what's what people: reporters, celebrities, singers, scientists, writers, artists, politicians, and so forth. No one generally impressive, in Rouge's opinion.</p>
<p>Without any social interruptions, Rouge stepped up through the entry, presented her forged invitation card, and gained entry. Inside, she slid into the large, lingering swaths of humans and mobians and sipped wine while she scoped the place.</p>
<p>Miss Loveswirl was hard to miss. The young, lovely red-head wore a pale yellow, form-fitting gown that near perfectly matched the obtrusively large, golden chaos emerald she'd clipped up high in her hair. Now, that curled head of red hair certainly complimented the emerald, but even observing it from a distance made Rouge smirk.</p>
<p>She silently slipped back, out into a hall, peered around, and headed for the stairs. A minute later, Rouge peered down from three stories up, observing Miss Loveswirl laughing with whoever the stuffed shirts were she was obviously flirting with.</p>
<p>"Oh, honey, you should at least be a little subtle," Rouge whispered and chuckled. "But I guess with a gem like that in your hair, you think every man will be licking your money-laden feet."</p>
<p>Then she ghosted back into dimmer areas and pressed herself against the wall. An employee of some type walked past. She waited an entire thirty more seconds before slipping quickly down the rest of the hall to where a floral-decored oak door stood.</p>
<p>"Please," Rouge groaned a slight. "This is insulting! At least hire a guard. Oh well! I'm not that disappointed. That girl's not exactly bright."</p>
<p>With a sigh, Rouge picked the basic lock in just seconds, entered the room, and closed it. The place was no less than a suite. Definitely that girl's personal chamber. It popped with juvenile décor that matched her helium personality: pink blanket, stuffed animals, far too much scattered perfume and makeup; computer, full-length mirror, closet, a safe-</p>
<p>Rouge smiled in the darkness at the glittering object and approached it, "At least she had the sense to have it placed in the wall, but nothing else."</p>
<p>It was incredible how Miss Loveswirl hadn't even attempted to hide it. Rather bored, Rouge plainly walked up to it and pulled out a tiny device from her clutch. She pressed it to the front of the safe and waited, a gloved hand on her hip. In five seconds, the little circular device beeped and the door of the safe opened.</p>
<p>Then Rouge gasped, sparkles of delight lighting her eyes. Withholding a laugh of delight, she greedily plucked a golden chaos emerald from the safe.</p>
<p>Just then, there was a sound without!</p>
<p>Rouge faded into a tiny slit of space between a shelf and a black corner, hidden quite well, save for the glittering emerald. Quickly, she slid it behind herself and then she forced herself to be calm, to breathe slowly, evenly, silently.</p>
<p>A tall, slender, rather feminine frame entered the room, lit by the lights from the hall beaming in. It was Miss Loveswirl. The woman felt for the light switch and then the room was flooded bright.</p>
<p>Rouge waited for a set of seconds that felt horribly long to her. She wasn't concerned about being caught; she was just amused and annoyed at how long it took the woman to notice her safe was open, and then for her brain to crank into giving her the realization that her big emerald was gone.</p>
<p>And when she did, her hand rose to the fake emerald in her hair and she froze.</p>
<p>"I guess you were very slightly intelligent, to flaunt yourself publicly with only paste," Rouge chuckled inside. She'd suspected the one on display on the woman's head had been fake. When she'd gotten a glance, even from a distance, she'd known it was true. She wasn't the world's greatest treasure hunter only because of her abilities to find jewels, after all.</p>
<p>A gasp left Miss Loveswirl's throat. She ran from the room, calling for someone. Rouge couldn't have cared less. Actually, a confrontation would have made things at least barely interesting. Alas for that!</p>
<p>She glided across the room to the large window, unlatched it, stepped out, glanced back with a sassy smirk, and sprang from the sill for the sky. Crouched down on the roof, she waited and listened, and was deliciously satisfied upon hearing Miss Loveswirl and some officers return to the room to investigate.</p>
<p>"I wonder if she'd insured the emerald, and what the policy amount is?" With one more chuckle, Rouge slid from the roof of the estate at the back and fluttered down a large, rolling hill to a particular lonely section of asphalt some distance from the full parking lot. Wordlessly, she stepped into the limousine and the vehicle slinked away.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>They were now an entire day ahead of their schedule! Such wonderful things hadn't happened for he and his wife in such a long time, that when Richard received the update that the GUN agent had retrieved a chaos emerald, and that it was currently on its way down, he was just—just—astounded! Immediately, he and Isolena had dropped everything else they'd been probing and testing and took themselves hastily down the corridor to the main laboratory.</p>
<p>As they entered, two of their colleagues were already there, masks and gloves and booties on, with excited energy radiating off of them. A third of their team members entered in behind them, almost bumping into the couple.</p>
<p>All five of them stepped to the side, greatly impatient, but trying to act professional. Then the door beeped and flashed and two GUN soldiers wearing appropriate coats and matching laboratory coverings on their extremities entered. One held a large semi-automatic gun of some type. The other man was where everyone's eyes went to, for he held, half wrapped in a maroon velvet cloth, the bulbous, glittering golden chaos emerald.</p>
<p>"Your delivery," he spoke with some wit, stepping in and handing the priceless bundle to Director Marshall. "GUN expects your report later today about the chaos emerald."</p>
<p>"Later today?" Richard balked. "But—GUN knows that tests could take longer than that!"</p>
<p>"No later than eight," the soldier reiterated, he and his companion nodding once to the scientists and exiting.</p>
<p>As the door shut and sealed, Richard slowly turned around to face his team. The tense silence broke with the group clustering in before Richard like children, releasing sounds of admiration over such a famous gem. Only a few in all the records the earth possessed had ever come so close to a chaos emerald! The seven chaos emeralds were known universally, their terrifying power having played in the endless power struggle between good and evil for as long as anyone could imagine.</p>
<p>Richard cleared his throat and the group all eyed him together, "Let's begin. We have to have something to report by eight tonight."</p>
<p>"Yes," Isolena stepped just leftward of the center of the room and pressed a button on a console. A slender metal pipe with a glass container rose from the metal floor. She calmly opened the canister and her husband placed the emerald inside.</p>
<p>"Everything's ready for an analysis?"</p>
<p>"Yes," one of the male scientists responded.</p>
<p>"Okay. Let's get our cut, then."</p>
<p>The tension rose further. Richard stepped aside as his wife grasped a metal lever and pulled it down. From it, she brought a slender, long metal arm down until it hovered just above the chaos emerald. One more tapped button, and a tiny finger popped down and rested right atop the emerald. A small, sparkling diamond attached to the finger tapped the emerald.</p>
<p>Again, the group eyed each other, and then Isolena turned the machine on and slowly cut right into the emerald. She cut down the top edge of the gem, ever so slowly, tiny golden pieces tinkling down around the larger mass. They removed just a very small, thin line of material off the emerald, but a long, severely narrow slit remained of what was now gone from it.</p>
<p>The scientists silently breathed a sigh of relief. After all they'd heard and researched about the mysterious power of the chaos emeralds, they'd expected some catastrophe to happen after desecrating one.</p>
<p>But, as everything stood still and calm, Isolena coolly remarked, "I guess all that unscientific mess about chaos energy was just trope."</p>
<p>A split second after the words left her lips, the entire building began to shake from an earthquake. The five scientists stumbled and twirled, falling, grabbing onto whatever was closest and safe.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>Once more observing the scientists from her dark spot in the air vent, Rouge held in a gasp. They brought in the chaos emerald she'd stolen for GUN, but that wasn't what had stunned her. The scientists made a big show over the sparkly piece of wonderfulness and she'd smirked. Then watched, with increasing fascination that quickly turned into dismay. They cut into the gem!</p>
<p>She blinked, fear actually tingling down her spine. Didn't those educated fools know not to disrespect a chaos emerald? Did they not fear what might happen by cutting such a sacred, powerful relic?</p>
<p>But she had only seconds to contain her racing thoughts, as the earth began to tremble. She lay on her stomach, lest she make noise and be discovered.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>In another area of Central City, Dylan sat in his history class, trying not to nod off. A review of governmental systems through time wasn't an especially fascinating topic. He'd tried to blink away the sleep, to write notes, to watch the teacher walk to and fro as he lectured, but nothing helped. And he wasn't the only one fighting against weariness.</p>
<p>Then, with a gasp, he clutched the sides of his desk. The floor began to rumble, the desks shifting. Some of the girls began to gasp and scream. Dylan stood and rushed with the others to the back of the room where it was void of objects that could hurt them.</p>
<p>What was going on? Central City rarely ever had earthquakes!</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>But it wasn't just Central City experiencing the quake. At Seaside Village, as Tails was working on his latest version of the Tornado at one of his more remote workshops, he gasped as the sand jumped and he fell backwards, losing his balance. Sonic whizzed in and grabbed onto the trunk of the nearest palm tree.</p>
<p>"What's going on, Tails?"</p>
<p>"Obviously, an earthquake!" Tails called back, wanting to roll his eyes.</p>
<p>Sonic's communicator beeped, "Knuckles?"</p>
<p>"Sonic, what's going on? The master emerald is getting pretty angry!" The echidna's face blinked onto the little screen, with a very brightly-glowing master emerald lit up behind him. "I feel a strong wave of chaos energy coursing through the entire planet! Is Eggman doing something stupid again?"</p>
<p>"N—not that I'm aware of!" Sonic responded, teeth chattering. "It's actually been really calm for several months!"</p>
<p>Knuckles growled in anger, "Yeah, well that could just mean Eggman's been working on his next plan! I like it better when that fool pops up weekly with some absurd plot. Look, you might want to see if you can find out what's going on. I need to stay here and try to calm the master emerald down or something."</p>
<p>"Well, okay. Tails and I will see what we can find!"</p>
<p>"I can't be sure, but I think the source might be in Central City."</p>
<p>"Okay. Thanks Knuckles!"</p>
<p>Before Sonic ended the call, Knuckles advised, voice wary, "Sonic, be careful. The energy really feels violent this time."</p>
<p>And then the call was over. Sonic continued to grasp the trunk, though he watched Tails struggling across the beach. It was quite ridiculous. Tails had fallen on his back in the sand. When he'd tried to get up, he'd not been able to keep his balance and just kept yelling and gasping and falling over and over.</p>
<p>Then the poor fox lamented, "My plane!"</p>
<p>The machine teetered and fell sideways, spewing pieces of metal.</p>
<p>Sonic suppressed a laugh. And then—the shaking abruptly, completely stopped! He scratched his head in confusion. Tails immediately ran to his precious plane to right it, fuss over it, and of course fix it.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>Some hours outside of Central City, at one of the numberless GUN bases, Shadow was sliding a tablet of his findings from his latest mission across a long, oak desk at Commander Tower. The proud, older gentleman grasped the tablet without a word and began to scan through it. Neither spoke. Shadow stood at his end of the table, arms crossed, and peered around; not so much for any entertainment value. He'd been in this room and others like it many times. He just absently slid his eyes over the shelves, file cabinets, computer consoles, and other typical fixtures of such debriefing spaces.</p>
<p>The Commander opened his mouth to speak, then grasped the heavy table before him as the entire base began to rumble and shake.</p>
<p>Shadow darted his eyes about the room in confusion. He felt a hot, violent energy and automatically pulled out the red chaos emerald he always kept hidden on his person. It was pulsing and sizzling to the touch. Grimacing, he dropped it and stared at his hand in further dismay. Then his eyes shot upward and he closed them, hand to his temple as chaos energy blasted through, ripping even more energy from his body.</p>
<p>In less than a minute, the earthquake ceased and Shadow could gasp freely for air. At least he'd managed to keep to his feet during that upsetting feeling. Now that it was gone, he grabbed the red gem. It was cold again.</p>
<p>Though the savage chaos energy had died away, an undercurrent remained that he felt keenly from the emerald. Suspiciously, he studied it.</p>
<p>"Shadow?"</p>
<p>The Commander. Shadow darted his eyes up, "Excuse me? Oh. Yes. Did you have a question about my report?"</p>
<p>"No—no of course not. I never do. But—that earthquake!"</p>
<p>"Yes. I have to go."</p>
<p>"Wait—I have another mission for you!"</p>
<p>"Sorry, Commander," Shadow paused at the door and peered back in. The impressive gentleman was on his feet, staring in disbelief that one of his agents was about to leave without being dismissed. "Something else has suddenly come up. I'll get in contact with you later."</p>
<p>"Shadow, stop! I command you!"</p>
<p>Shadow only smirked, stepping out of sight into one of the many halls. Ultimately, no one told him what to do. With a casual toss of the emerald, he grabbed it with, "chaos control!"</p>
<p>Explosive pain burst through his body as the chaos portal opened. Shadow wanted to scream, but no sound came out. He shut his eyes in peril as he was sucked into the energy. Spitting Shadow out in the most repulsed manner, chaos control opened at his destination and he was flung out, falling, rolling, clawing at the earth in anger and confusion.</p>
<p>With an exhale of pain, he came to a halt, face in the grass, and slowly struggled to get to his feet. He still had the chaos emerald tightly clutched in his hand. His chaos control had worked—but just.</p>
<p>"What was that?" He mumbled, then checked his surroundings. Yes. He'd at least managed to arrive at his desired destination, although not very precisely. The tall, spiraling, elegant skyscraper of the hotel where he and Rouge currently lived rose across the street before him. With a normal chaos control, he'd always been able to pinpoint exactly where he wanted to appear with centimeter precision. Now, he'd ended up far from that point, relative to his abilities.</p>
<p>And that pain! Like the chaos energy had been trying to grab his heart and rip it right out of his body. Every fiber and cell of him had screamed for the agony to end.</p>
<p>There was something wrong; something far worse than he'd thought from the initial energy blast and earthquake. Something was out of balance.</p>
<p>As if to answer him, his communicator went off. Shadow ran his hands through his quills before answering. No need to look disheveled or upset.</p>
<p>Then he cleared his throat, "Yes, Rouge?"</p>
<p>She sounded upset, "Shadow, did you feel that earthquake?"</p>
<p>With just a hint of sarcasm, he answered, "Yes. I think the entire planet felt that."</p>
<p>"Unbelievable," she huffed. "I think it's because these scientists cut into a chaos emerald."</p>
<p>Shadow found himself so surprised, he didn't respond right away. The idea hadn't ever occurred to him that a chaos emerald could be cut into; but, thinking about it, if the emerald matched the hardness of a regular emerald according to Mohs Hardness Scale, then a few things could cut into one. However, who would have been so insane as to do that?</p>
<p>"Shadow?"</p>
<p>"Where are you?" He asked as calmly as he could.</p>
<p>"I'm at that GUN laboratory for Project Miracle. I thought it was in my right and now even my business to see just what they had planned for that kind of a gem. So, I've been watching them. Those scientists actually cut a line down an entire side of a chaos emerald!"</p>
<p>"Fools!" Shadow grit. "I didn't think humans were this dumb."</p>
<p>"I'm going to come out now, Shadow. Can you meet me at our place?"</p>
<p>"Sure. I'll go there now." And he hung up.</p>
<p>Narrowing his eyes, Shadow decided against trying to chaos control up to their rooms. It could have been a test to see if he could still use such a skill, but he wasn't enthused about causing himself more unnecessary pain. He'd try it again, in secret, after Rouge caught him up on what she knew.</p>
<p>So he walked to the sidewalk and joined a large group of humans and mobians waiting for the signal to turn green. Doing such a thing felt slightly odd. Not that he'd not walked many places before; Just—he felt vulnerable. If he couldn't use chaos control without such horrendous pain, and with far less precision, he most likely would have trouble with his other abilities. That made him very upset.</p>
<p>Shadow brooded for his entire painstakingly slow walk from the street to the hotel, from the hotel lobby to the elevator, and from there to his and Rouge's rooms. Inside the silence, he sat on their shared couch and stared hard at the heavenly beauty of the chaos emerald. Some very small disturbance swirled and slithered around in the gem. Concentrating, Shadow closed his eyes, both hands on the emerald, and tried to draw close to the energy. He grit his teeth, pushing, pushing, and then clutched his chest and panted. He had to stop. Something in the emerald had reached out and tried to pierce him in the heart.</p>
<p>It honestly frightened him, so much that he gingerly placed the stone on the table before him. There he sat, absently staring at it, until Rouge silently slipped in and locked the door.</p>
<p>"Shadow!" Her voice was low, quick, disturbed. With none of her usual flirting, but with a fast step, she came to him and sat down to his right. "Hello?"</p>
<p>He snapped out of it and turned to her.</p>
<p>"Hey—why do you have your chaos emerald out like that? You never do that. Is something wrong?"</p>
<p>Perceptive woman.</p>
<p>"The chaos emeralds are unstable," he answered. "I was trying to feel what was going on."</p>
<p>"No luck?"</p>
<p>"There's no such thing as luck," he monotonously informed.</p>
<p>Rouge lowered her eyes at him, then turned to the gem. For once, she didn't carry any lust for such a sparkler. Then, tone low and worried, she spoke again, "Shadow, I'm not sure if Project Miracle is as great as I was hoping it was. The briefing GUN gave me states that the purpose of the project is to make some type of medicine that will cure all sorts of diseases. The recipe for this magic potion is a chaos emerald, human blood, and hedgehog blood."</p>
<p>"That sounds perverse," Shadow mumbled.</p>
<p>"I didn't know just what GUN was going to do with the emerald, but they—I would never have guessed they'd want to cut it and use the powder they cut off. If I'd known, I wouldn't have undertaken that mission."</p>
<p>"Is that what they're doing?"</p>
<p>Rouge nodded, "It must be. I watched the scientists hose the powder away. Who knows if they might use more of the emerald later?"</p>
<p>Shadow didn't respond. The correct thing to do was to investigate the project and, if it was some horribly unethical monster, confront GUN. If GUN didn't want to stop the project, he would destroy it. However, was he capable of using his chaos abilities now? If he wasn't, his power was greatly limited. That would mean his usefulness would be greatly diminished. And that thought made Shadow feel weak and vulnerable and useless. His self-esteem started to wane.</p>
<p>Rouge interrupted his thoughts, "Shadow, I think I should find out more of what Project Miracle is up to before you and I decide if we should intervene or not—and possibly how. Are you able to clear your schedule to be ready if we need to act together?"</p>
<p>"Do you know what you're proposing?" He picked up the emerald and tucked it away again in his quills, daring it to strike him with more pain.</p>
<p>"Yes," Rouge half whispered. "But—I think, ultimately, doing the right thing is more important than my career as a GUN agent."</p>
<p>He admired her greatly just then, but kept his tone dull, "I agree. And yes. I turned down the Commander's latest mission. My time is open."</p>
<p>"Okay. Then it's a plan. Project Miracle is on a tight calendar. Their specimen—as they call the thing they're growing—will cease to exist in just a few weeks if they can't get things to work out right. That means you and I should have enough information to know what to do in just a few days. You won't be bored?"</p>
<p>"I don't think so," he thought about all the chaos abilities he'd be testing, almost the second she was gone. He actually itched with impatience to get out and run to some abandoned, depressing, broken down outskirts of Central City to make good his testing.</p>
<p>But he couldn't let Rouge notice how agitated he was, so he waited.</p>
<p>"Great. Now, before we split, I think I should make a phone call to someone we know," her slight flirtatious tone had returned. Rouge punched a button on her communicator and waited, smirk rising.</p>
<p>Shadow adjusted himself so he was more readily facing her. He secretly enjoyed it when she did these types of things.</p>
<p>A red face appeared on the screen and Rouge blinked happily, "Knuckles! How have you been?"</p>
<p>"What do you want?" Knuckles grunted.</p>
<p>"Oh, I was just wondering if you'd felt that little tremor a few minutes ago?"</p>
<p>"Stop with the tone, woman. Of course, I felt it. Everyone did!"</p>
<p>"Then, did the shockwave begin at the master emerald?"</p>
<p>"I don't think so-" Then Knuckles caught himself giving away so much information and frowned even deeper. "What are you up to? Why are you asking?"</p>
<p>Rouge tilted her head and eyed Shadow from the corner of her vision. He was looking at Knuckles with a tell-tale smirk on his face. Knuckles couldn't see Shadow she knew, which made this even more hilarious.</p>
<p>"I was just concerned about you, honey," the words slid as silk from her tongue.</p>
<p>And angered Knuckles more, "I don't need your concern!"</p>
<p>"How's Angel Island these days?" she pretended to be bored.</p>
<p>Knuckles narrowed his eyes. Rouge never asked anything innocently. She was always fishing for information for some reason or another. However, there seemed to be an undertone to why she was asking and he felt as though he could tell her, "The island's fine, of course. Why do you care?"</p>
<p>"That means you're fine then, too, and that makes me relieved."</p>
<p>That was a rare second of honesty that took Knuckles aback with sheer shock.</p>
<p>Rouge chuckled, "Take care of yourself, Knuckles. You'll be hearing from me again soon."</p>
<p>She hung up, her smile immediately falling with a sigh. She and that ridiculous hot head always went at it, almost as a form of flirtation. She was too good for him, but Shadow assumed Rouge didn't think so. An independent woman like her though might not want to settle down enough to stick to a man for quite some time. No wonder all those two shared were brief moments of argumentation and seconds of sweet affection.</p>
<p>She asked Shadow a question that made his stomach tighten, "Do you have someone you like, Shadow? Someone that makes you worried just enough that you make sure you keep tabs on them so you at least know that they're fine?"</p>
<p>He looked out the window, "Is it really time to be asking such a useless question?"</p>
<p>Rouge sadly chuckled, "You're right. Okay, I'm going to head out now. Behave while I'm gone!"</p>
<p>Her flirty smile and posture were back. Shadow just nodded and silently watched her leave. As soon as she was gone, he pulled out his red chaos emerald again and slowly turned it in his hands, so that the hundreds of facings glittered from the sunlight pouring in from the window.</p>
<p>Yes, he had someone he held deep affection for. But he knew she was alright. She was persistently around, so that he never had to wonder if she was hurt. Right at this time, though, she was not a concern to waste more time thinking about.</p>
<p>Shadow needed to test his abilities. He slid from the couch and took himself out.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>After the earthquake had passed, Richard and his team had checked their lab to ensure everything was intact. And with that assessed, they had hurried into a trial of sorts. This was the first time they'd have gotten this far and the entire team was almost electric with hope and jitters.</p>
<p>Richard had planned and tested and retested and checked and verified that his blood would be the genetic match for the creature they'd been growing. He and his wife had designed it to be compatible only with his blood. All their tests with his blood injected into the creature had gone well. There'd been no adverse reaction.</p>
<p>But now they had the chaos bits, ground into fine powder, the final ingredient! Finally, they were about to test the chaos powder with his blood and the creature's blood!</p>
<p>Richard, Isolena, and the other three scientists stood before a large half wall of glass panels. On the other side of the panels was a rectangular-shaped room of metal. Only a chamber sat in the center of the room. A small robot on wheels slid in from a small door, holding a tube with a needle attached at the end.</p>
<p>The little robot turned to the eager scientists and Richard blinked. It rolled smoothly over to the chamber and a tiny panel of the glass lid opened. White, frozen air slowly rose. The robot extended its skinny, yellow arm into the opening, then retracted it. The blood inside the needle it was holding was gone.</p>
<p>"Now for the final part," Isolena whispered.</p>
<p>Their little robot assistant placed the needle on a metal table near the growth chamber. Out came two more skinny arms from its belly, holding surgical tools. With precision no doctor could measure, the machine once more reached into the pod and performed something on the creature no one could see. Then it brought forth a second, very tiny vial with just the slightest measurement of something glittery and gold and extended that, likewise, into the chamber.</p>
<p>It was all very suspenseful for the scientists, who'd waited years for this moment. Dreamed of it. And in seconds, with the perfection of the machine's touch, the surgery was over, the glass opening was sealed anew, and the robot rolled out of the room. Silence only remained.</p>
<p>Then, a complex set of live vital signs loaded. The scientists immediately peered up at the broad set of screens that extended from one end of an entire wall to the other.</p>
<p>Isolena eyed her husband, "How long until we know if the body accepts the chaos powder?"</p>
<p>"I'm not sure. Our models projected one to three hours."</p>
<p>"We won't make it before eight."</p>
<p>"I don't care," Richard nearly snapped. "GUN can wait another day for their precious report. This process can't be rushed."</p>
<p>There was no need for him to tell her what she already knew. Her husband wouldn't fail. What bothered her the most right then was the itch in her mind that Eggman, no doubt, was monitoring everything they were doing.</p>
<p>Richard cut her thoughts off, "Honey, go home. Spend some time with Dylan. You haven't much, lately. The kid must be sort of lonely."</p>
<p>"What?" She didn't want to leave! They were about to succeed—after a decade!</p>
<p>"I'm the one that has to write the report tonight—or tomorrow. And I know you're exhausted. So am I, but I can't leave right now; you can. Please, go home and rest for me and Dylan."</p>
<p>When he put it like that, Isolena felt too guilty not to go. At the same time, she was upset that her husband had such sway to speak so softly, so lovingly, that she couldn't refute him.</p>
<p>With a terse, "fine," she turned about and walked out of the lab.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. One Variable, Multiple Problems</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Richard stared once more at the clock. It was nearly midnight. He'd missed the eight deadline, but he knew he would. No one had expected him to actually submit a report for such a tight schedule. He still sighed. His back was aching again. All the other scientists had gone on home. It was just him, once more, for an uncountable time, pouring over research.</p><p>But this time it was different.</p><p>He'd been examining and comparing the vital signs of their specimen. All had been steady, correct, but he was anxious now, for a hiccup had popped up just a few minutes ago. Nothing to be worried about, he'd thought. Yet, the vital signs kept slowly altering, until, feeling nauseous and horrified, Richard reacted.</p><p>The specimen had started suffering some kind of physical rejection to the mix of its blood and the chaos powder. The body was undergoing intense stress and the organs were starting to swell.</p><p>Richard desperately worked the panels. The robot assistant slid back into the sterile room. Under Richard's instruction, it injected medicine of more than one type into the creature laying on the bed in the glass chamber. The heart rate was erratic!</p><p>His blood was being rejected. Richard couldn't understand. He'd designed the creature to be compatible with his blood—only his blood! He'd run over a hundred tests combining his blood with samples of the creature's hedgehog blood; then he'd injected his own blood directly into the creature. All of those tests had worked without any problems! The specimen's body had experienced no problems assimilating his blood into itself. Now—why?</p><p>"It's the chaos powder," he whispered in shock. That was the only variable that had been very recently introduced. But—even then! He'd had access to scientific research and educated opinions about the chaos emeralds, too: their properties, their makeup. He'd planted imitation chaos powder into the specimen with both blood types before, too, and that, likewise, had been fine!</p><p>Another alarm went off concerning the little creature in the chamber. Richard slammed his fist to the wall, exasperated and tired. Their masterpiece was dying!</p><p>He whirled and quickly prepared a strong dose of medicine, handing it off to the robot assistant. That should stabilize the creature for now. But—</p><p>As the flashing vital signs changed from red back to gold, Richard sunk into his chair.</p><p>"Why didn't my blood work with that chaos powder? Is it—was it not compatible after all?"</p><p>A new problem arose on the screens. Though he'd managed to stabilize the specimen, irreversible heart damage had happened to it. And the brain, which had only been grown to function on a basic level, had also been severely damaged. They'd never intended to allow the brain to develop to the point of conscious awareness. Only to carry out the basic, mechanical instructions so the body would technically be alive. But, now, the brain was in an increased spiral of decay.</p><p>Now they didn't have several weeks. Only a few days. If they didn't find a solution in that new time frame, the creature would die. That meant they didn't even have a month to grow a new heart or brain! So—even if they managed to get their blood and emerald concoction to work, the creature would still die.</p><p>Richard felt like killing himself. Then, an idea came to him. If they found a matching blood donor, could compatible blood with the chaos powder reverse the damage done to the brain and organs? It seemed absurd, but he had to try! They'd labored a decade on this!</p><p>He picked up his phone and dialed a number.</p><p>~~~~~~~</p><p>Isolena stroked her son's hair. He breathed slowly, deeply. She'd enjoyed herself more than she thought she would. Dylan and she had spent a few hours together talking, watching some show he liked. Then he'd showed her his latest improvements and ideas with all that baking he enjoyed so much. All the while, his little pet had fluttered about.</p><p>She smiled fondly at the teenager. In some ways, he was so childish for his age. That was probably because he hadn't befriended many people through the years, preferring to keep to himself for reasons, including his hemophilia. Her sweet, innocent, cloistered son.</p><p>Just two years ago, she and Richard had bought him that little chao for his thirteenth birthday. It wasn't often that a human was able to own a chao, but Dylan had been ecstatic. Good thing, too, for the money they forked over. She'd never imagined he and the little blue thing would have become so close. But it made her quite satisfied that he was so responsible with caring for it and that he and the creature were so happy together.</p><p>"Just a few more days, Dylan, and we may have the cure for your hemophilia," Isolena whispered, stroking her son's hair a bit more. She rose and quietly left his room, closing the door behind her.</p><p>Her phone rumbled. Blinking wearily at it, she picked up, "Richard, are you coming home soon?"</p><p>"Honey, I need a sample of your blood and Dylan's blood," he rushed.</p><p>In a second, Isolena completely awoke, "Why? Did something go wrong with the specimen?"</p><p>An ominous pause. Richard sighed, "Hurry, honey. I'll explain when you get back to the lab. Bring me the samples!"</p><p>"Alright," she hung up, lingering in her spot. Such a stunned feeling of rage and horror washed over her, that Isolena could only clutch her phone as she tried to grapple with his orders. The blood samples.</p><p>Recovering, she hurried with militaristic single-mindedness to her bathroom and pulled out two needles and tubes. Gloves, sterilizer. She swabbed her arm and withdrew a full vial of her own blood. Carefully, she placed it on a cloth, wiped her arm, and put a bandage over the intrusion.</p><p>Turning about, she silently walked back into her son's room, dropped to her knees beside his low bed, and placed a cloth over his mouth. Chloroform. Just a mild dose. She didn't want him waking up to find his own mother violating him by taking some of his blood without his permission.</p><p>Though she did just that, with precision, almost coldly, uncaring that it was her son. Their entire decade of work was in jeopardy! That was the priority. She could evaluate her ethics at some later point.</p><p>Finished, Isolena packed the samples into a small cooler and quickened her pace out to her car. She took the freeway, quite empty at this time of night, and made good timing to GUN's massive complex. Inside, suited up and stepping back into the lab with her samples, Richard hurried up and took the precious little box from her without a word. In silence, she followed him to the screens of panels and started to review what had happened in her absence.</p><p>Her brow furled, "You're looking for an alternative compatible sample?"</p><p>That was the only reaction he received from his wife about the sudden, unforeseen, almost complete collapse of so many hours of work. Her ability to withhold her emotions continued to stun him.</p><p>"Yes," he could only respond. "The assistant has already withdrawn two samples of the specimen's blood that has all three components: the chaos powder, hedgehog blood, and my blood. We'll inject it with a small amount of the two samples you collected and see if either cause a reaction or not."</p><p>Isolena merely nodded and turned to observe the little robot in the sealed-off room undergoing Richard's instructions. First, the robot used a small sample of her blood. Then he did the same with their son's blood.</p><p>A couple minutes of suffocating silence reigned as the couple waited and watched monitors. Then a beep on the sample with Isolena's blood. Her blood was not compatible. But Dylan's—no beep came. They both waited longer and still no reaction.</p><p>"It's stable?" Richard wearily asked.</p><p>Isolena tapped the monitors to review. "Yes. There seems to be no negative reaction at all. Shall we inject the specimen with the rest of his blood?"</p><p>Feebly, Richard only nodded.</p><p>His wife could tell his body, already fatigued, was about to collapse as his mind tried to cope with the near destruction of everything, and then with the hope that things might work out.</p><p>She felt pity for him, but also rage—rage that she knew was incorrectly pointed at him. He'd made no mistakes. Such was the reality of their work: some variable always arose, no matter how much testing and planning they put into it. It wasn't his fault this had happened. Chaos emeralds were an enigma.</p><p>She would be strong, steadfast for them both. Isolena handed a new set of instructions to their lab assistant. The robot nodded, returned to the specimen, and injected the entirety of Dylan's blood into it.</p><p>Now Isolena sighed and refocused her thoughts a slight, "Richard, the brain and heart are already too damaged to be recovered, even if Dylan's blood is compatible. What should we do?"</p><p>"We'll need to find a replacement heart and brain."</p><p>"A heart is do-able. A brain? Do you think we could find a recently-deceased brain to revive and place in the body? The brain is too complex. Any brain we take from a corpse may already have too much damage to be usable. Could the specimen survive without a brain?"</p><p>"You know the answer."</p><p>Of course, she did. The brain controlled all the essential motor functions of the body. Without it, the body would literally just be a blob. That wouldn't be an issue, except that the physical health of their specimen had to be maintained. The heart had to be maintained to pump the chaos-infused blood; without a brain, the heart would most likely give out and the entire medicine-giving creature would cease.</p><p>Isolena stood silent, rigid, observing her exhausted husband sitting before the panels, gripping the edge of the metal chair in mental agony.</p><p>"I'll—I'll find a heart and brain, Isolena. Don't worry."</p><p>She narrowed her eyes. "Where?"</p><p>"I don't know—but I will."</p><p>"Let me look—"</p><p>"No!"</p><p>Isolena clamped her mouth shut. Immediately, Richard heaved, suppressing a sob and rose, embracing his wife close to him.</p><p>He whispered, "I'm sorry. I—I'm just tired, honey. Please trust me on this. I'll find what we need. Thanks for coming so fast. Go back home. I'll sleep here tonight in the break room. I can't be away from work at this critical juncture."</p><p>She didn't like how he sounded. It was more than simple fatigue. Isolena felt troubled and she studied her husband's face closely. But he only smiled and gave her a kiss and then another hug. A bit confused and feeling suspicious, Isolena nevertheless nodded and exited the laboratory.</p><p>First thing for the morning shift, she'd be back and would re-discuss their situation with him.</p><p>~~~~~~~</p><p>The little fox gasped and fell head-first into the cockpit. Groaning, he rolled around and stood up, holding a wrench in one hand and a tablet in the other. A blue blur appeared below, to which Tails hid a groan of annoyance.</p><p>"C'mon, Tails! I can't run across water. Are you done tinkering around in there, yet?"</p><p>"Just a couple more minutes, Sonic!"</p><p>"I need to get to Central City asap!"</p><p>"I remember," he lowered his eyelids a slight, turning back to his repairs. "I overhead your entire conversation with Knuckles."</p><p>Sonic blinked at his communicator. Amy was calling. He bit his lip a little and rejected the call. After his discussion with Knuckles, he'd spent a bit of time checking around the island and making sure things were okay. Then he'd sort of gone to sleep that night. He hadn't meant to! Just—Tails had been working on repairs to the Tornado all night long. The sun had risen less than a half hour ago but he was anxious to get going to the city.</p><p>However, his pal was still banging away at whatever stuff was in the engine.</p><p>Amy tried calling again. Sonic let it run to voice mail this time. That felt less rude.</p><p>"I'm done, Sonic!"</p><p>"That's great!" Sonic sprung up right into the back seat of the plane, enthused, well-rested, bursting with energy to be on their way. "How long will it take to get to Central City?"</p><p>"Just a few hours," Tails slid into the cockpit and yawned. "But, uhm, I have a favor to ask of you, Sonic."</p><p>"Anything for my pal!"</p><p>Tails peered over the backseat at Sonic, his eyes heavy from all the physical and mental effort he'd poured into his beloved aircraft. He slid his focus to the side, a bit nervous, "I know it's been a while since you flew the Tornado, but could you do it for me this time? I'm kinda tired."</p><p>A pang of guilt bolted through Sonic again. He fully realized only then how Tails was just sagging, trying hard to stay awake.</p><p>"I—" Sonic swallowed. Like water, he was afraid to pilot this version of the tornado. It had been a while—several versions of the Tornado ago, to put it into better perspective. He could see past Tails at the cockpit controls: dozens of switches and touch screens and technical things he hadn't re-familiarized himself with, because, well, he wouldn't be piloting the machine, right?</p><p>Tails seemed to read his mind, "Don't worry, Sonic. A guy that can go super can certainly pilot the Tornado. I'll put autopilot on so you can just cruise. If something happens, just wake me up. Good?"</p><p>Sonic felt his quills lower. He'd begun to bristle without realizing it. "Uh, sure Tails! That's thoughtful of you. Let's just swap seats!" With his trademark chuckle, Sonic grabbed the back of the seat and threw himself clear over, perfectly into the pilot's chair.</p><p>Tails oozed over the seat to the back and sighed, buckling himself in rather slowly.</p><p>Sonic did likewise, "You secure?"</p><p>"Yep! Thanks Sonic," Tails patted his friends' shoulder. "I know we have to go, so thanks for doing this for me."</p><p>"We help each other, Tails!"</p><p>Flipping a switch most appropriately labeled "ON," Sonic peered back at Tails again.</p><p>"It's on the touch screen, Sonic. Labeled auto pilot. I put in the coordinates for Central City already."</p><p>"You read my mind!"</p><p>As the Tornado rose then blasted clear ahead and gained altitude, Sonic heard Tails let off a lengthy sigh. He knew his pal had closed his eyes to sleep. It was just him, the sweet-smelling wind, the clouds, the—</p><p>Again, his communicator went off. He was about to scowl, but it wasn't Amy!</p><p>"Hey, Rouge, you never call. What's going on?"</p><p>"Hi, Sonic," she flirted. "Little ol' me's personally well, and so's your favorite alien-hedgehog hybrid."</p><p>"Yeah, if you say so," Sonic chuckled and rolled his eyes. He adjusted in the chair, crossing his feet up on the side of the Tornado. Tails had some nice beats going on. He pressed a button on the touch screen to lower the volume and turned his attention back to Rouge.</p><p>"Same with you, always," she sweetly chuckled, but her smile lessened as she changed the subject, "Sonic, I'd like you to come to Central City."</p><p>"Really? Tails and I are actually coming now!"</p><p>"You are?" A bit of genuine surprise lit her tone. She recovered, "Well, I'm rather pleased to hear this. Maybe I'll take you out for some gourmet chili dogs when you arrive. My treat! But, hey, did you also get impacted by that earthquake last night?"</p><p>Sonic put his feet back in place and sat up a bit straight. Now she had his attention, "Yeah. Wait—are you checking into that?"</p><p>"Yes, Shadow and I are. Say, have you found any chaos emeralds, recently?"</p><p>That was a strange question. Rouge was acting a bit off, though. Sonic had never been complimented on his abilities of reading underneath peoples' exteriors, but he felt he should get more credit now and then for perception. He could tell Rouge was trying to keep her flirtatious exterior propped up, but it wasn't working.</p><p>Sonic shook his head, smirking, "Nope. They always seem to have a way of finding their way back to me, so why should I go looking for them?"</p><p>She again chuckled, but it was empty. "Look," she sighed, "when you arrive, come to the Hotel le Beauté. Shadow and I are staying there for a while. I suspect something's going on with Shadow, but he hasn't told me about it. If you pick up on anything odd about him, don't push it, okay? I think it may be something actually serious this time, and you know how insecure he gets when people prod about him."</p><p>Sonic let of an actual sad kind of chuckle, "Yeah. He gets all defensive and threatens to kill someone."</p><p>The two paused. Rouge continued, "Shadow's not the point of my call. Sonic, that earthquake was caused because GUN scientists cut into a chaos emerald."</p><p>He almost jumped in his seat, "What? That could be dangerous!"</p><p>"Right. Something's going on here and we need to look into it."</p><p>He paused and remembered Tails was in the back seat. He glanced back. The kid was sleeping, head against the glass, drooling. Sonic smiled tenderly at Tails. He'd fill the little guy in later.</p><p>"Rouge, are you—are you asking me to join you about this?"</p><p>"Oh, don't tell me you're too true and blue to go spy with a gal just once, are you?" She teased him so that Sonic almost felt like he was blushing. "I promise I won't ask you to do anything your goody-two-shoes nature wouldn't let you. Just, help a girl out this time, will ya? I think what's going on may be bigger than what we're all used to. I'll be waiting for you, honey."</p><p>She hung up.</p><p>Sonic was speechless for almost an entire minute, which was an eternity for him. Sure, he could run fast, but that didn't always equal that he could think through things just as fast. Not that he was slow. No. Rouge was just such a woman to be—</p><p>And, to his groaning, the communicator went off again.</p><p>"Third time's a charm," he actually answered.</p><p>There was a high-pitch, "Sonic! Why didn't you pick up when I called the other times?"</p><p>"Hi, Amy," Sonic held in a sigh.</p><p>"Sonic, I was so scared! There was an—"</p><p>He casually cut her off, "—earthquake yesterday? Yeah, I know."</p><p>She sounded offended, "Well!"</p><p>He was confused, "Well, what?"</p><p>"Aren't you going to come to Central City and visit me? I was really scared! I'm still scared, Sonic!"</p><p>What an obvious excuse. The girl wasn't subtle, but Sonic was actually grateful for that. If Amy had the mental cognition to adapt her stalking to incorporate stealth and silence and actual planning, Sonic wasn't sure how he'd cope. The thought was taxing on his sanity. He swallowed.</p><p>"I—I'm already on my way, Amy—but for completely unrelated reasons!" He didn't want to give the impression that he'd been worrying so much about her, that he'd uprooted from his fun vacation just to give her comfort. A stubborn, resilient girl like her didn't need his protection against a simple earthquake.</p><p>"Really?" She squealed something horrendous and Sonic shut an eye for a second, wincing. "Oh, Sonic! I'm so happy to hear this! Did you want to stay at my place with me?"</p><p>"Uh, actually, Rouge called. I'm going to stay at her hotel room, I think—Tails and I."</p><p>A whine erupted on the other end. Amy groaned, "Rouge? But she's a temptress! She'll put you under her spell!"</p><p>"Shadow will be there," Sonic had no idea why he said that, but it had an interesting effect on the pink girl that he picked up on.</p><p>She was silent for some seconds, then tenuously queried, "Sh—shadow? He's in Central City?"</p><p>"Apparently. What, how could you miss that brooding face of his?"</p><p>"I—I don't know," she still sounded off, subdued, even thoughtful.</p><p>"Well, if you want to say hi to me, you'll most likely be able to catch up with him, too."</p><p>What he said was meant kindly and with a hint of teasing, but Amy acted like she hadn't heard it at all. She instead asked, "When you land, will you let me know? I'd like to come over and see you."</p><p>What was with that sudden, almost mature tone to the question? Sonic realized his mouth was open. He snapped it shut and pulled absently on one of his quills. "Of—of course I will, Amy. You're a pal!" But he felt very odd.</p><p>Amy smiled anew with her words, "Great! Okay—I gotta go! Shopping and things. C'ya Sonic! You're the best!"</p><p>Though she hung up first, Sonic stared at the little communicator on his wrist for some seconds, wondering what that entire conversation had just been about, really. Was Amy bipolar? Did she have split personality? Or was she just growing up and he'd not realized it because she'd been so one-dimensional in her personality for so long? How was he even supposed to feel if Amy had changed even a slight? She was a fun pal, when not chasing him; he really did like her. At times, he also felt romantic interest for her, but he liked other girls off and on too. She was special, just—not like that.</p><p>Why bother cracking his skull over it? He couldn't do anything but wait, which was such a horrible thing, that Sonic slipped off into a nap before realizing it. Once, he awoke, gasping and shaking his head. The Tornado was still on their protected course, but things could have gone very badly!</p><p>Sheepishly, Sonic glanced back at Tails. The fox was still obliviously sleeping.</p><p>"I won't do that again," he mumbled and attempted to pay attention.</p><p>~~~~~~~</p><p>Clouds were forming. A storm was coming, but he still had an hour or so before it would arrive. An hour was far more time than he needed. After deciding to rest that night to ensure his energy was full, Shadow had risen and left his hotel room. He relished the wind streaming past his body and shut his eyes for the slightest sliver of a moment. People gasped as he ran past. They always would. He never hit anyone—or anything. Yet, it was the same. And it made him smirk.</p><p>"I guess there is some fun when you don't use chaos control," he chuckled under his breath.</p><p>Up the sidewalks, down the sidewalks, across streets, through parking lots. He sped and sped and jumped over people, booths, chili dog stands, entire buildings. Nothing could stop him. It was a joy run he hadn't given himself in ages. Chaos control had just been so convenient that—</p><p>Well, so what. Using it was more efficient, but this feeling, to work his legs and not be running away from something, was nearly sublime.</p><p>He slapped exact change on the counter of an energy drink vendor and snatched a can without even slowing in the slightest. Yes, this was quite nice! No wonder that blue fool enjoyed aimlessly running all over the earth like some crazy animal.</p><p>Shadow did have a destination, but it would take him another entire minute to reach it. So, he jumped and skidded down a rail and continued on. He came to a park and began whipping around the still bodies of people and animals. Ahead, he grabbed a pole to whip himself to the right, and he smashed right into something that just happened to be barely behind the wall he was turning to go past. There was no way he'd have been able to see it ahead of time.</p><p>Time resumed at a normal pace for Shadow, as he rolled over on the pavement and shook his head slightly. What had he crashed into?</p><p>He heard a groan and looked to the left. Immediately, he suppressed a gurgle of surprise and concern in his throat. Quickly, Shadow stood and ensured he looked completely fine.</p><p>"Ow!" Amy had her hand pressed on her forehead. "What on earth was that?"</p><p>"It was me," Shadow was standing just to her right.</p><p>"Shadow!" Amy gasped.</p><p>He was used to such reactions and only gestured with his outstretched fingers for her to take them. Amy retracted her hands to her chest.</p><p>Shadow scowled, "I'm a bit busy, so if you don't want me to apologize for running into you, you can just sit there nursing your head. You may have a concussion."</p><p>Amy darted her confused eyes up at him and then she realized what he was offering. Apprehensively, she grabbed his hand and he wrenched her up. His stomach tightened. Perhaps he'd yanked her up too fast. She had almost fallen again and he was awkwardly holding her uptight, his palms on her shoulders.</p><p>"Oh, sorry," Amy backed out of his reach. She sighed and put her hand back to her forehead.</p><p>Shadow was both humored and upset that he could cause such trouble for her so easily. Well, she was an intelligent hedgehog and could take herself to get the proper medical attention. He had something to do, turning coldly away.</p><p>Then she teetered and grabbed the nearby pole.</p><p>Or maybe not.</p><p>"Come here, Rose," Shadow approached her.</p><p>Amy was recovered enough that she'd processed the situation and frowned at him, "I can't believe you ran into me, Shadow! What gives?"</p><p>"It was a mistake, Rose," he evenly stated. "I'll take you to the nearest hospital."</p><p>"No! I'll go myself!" She spun about to walk off and proceeded to sink down instead, dizzy.</p><p>Shadow sighed, caught her and picked her up, "Hold on."</p><p>"Sh—"</p><p>He bolted away, arriving at a hospital in just a few seconds. In the lobby, he carefully lowered her into a chair. She'd done well enduring the speed, most likely courtesy to being in that blue hedgehog's arms so often. The thought of Sonic holding her upset Shadow. That Amy was so hardy pleased him.</p><p>"Go get checked out," he began to walk away.</p><p>"Shadow!"</p><p>Shadow turned back.</p><p>"Thanks. I heard you were in town. Sorry I didn't know, or I would have tried to say hi earlier."</p><p>Inwardly surprised, outwardly bland, Shadow huffed, "No need, Rose."</p><p>And he walked out, only to resume his rapid pace to his destination: a nasty, rusty, moss-ridden factory of old, forgotten, in ruins. This place was open to his experimentation and destruction. No one would hear him here or care. It was quite lovely, Shadow realized; over two hundred years of slow rot had turned the place into an eco-system that still grew over pieces of brick and metal building that showed through. He wasn't sure what type of factory used to be here, but it was far outside the city's limits and away from everything.</p><p>He jumped up to a piece of roof on one of the old buildings and grasped his chaos emerald. Just a slight apprehensive, he closed his eyes and concentrated.</p><p>He shot yellow spears toward a piece of half dilapidated silo and grimaced, holding his arm. Frustrated, Shadow tried again, this time, on reaction, pressing his arm to his chest. The pain angered him. He ran forward and tried to transport, to boost, to shoot chaos energy forward. He succeeded in all those things, but each push on his body brought pain. He could only just muster enough concentration to burst up into the air and explode chaos energy at a tall smoke stack before falling on his back to the earth. Stunned, Shadow attempted to analyze what was going on.</p><p>It took him considerable strain to hold the chaos emerald up before him and examine it. No. This wasn't happening to him. He was the ultimate life form! The chaos energy was practically a part of him. He was always discovering new abilities he had, mastering older ones, improving his speed, reaction, stamina. The chaos emeralds had always bowed to his power; not the other way around!</p><p>If he couldn't use chaos energy much per this pain, he was more vulnerable than he'd first thought. He'd be little better than Sonic!</p><p>Enraged, Shadow struggled to his knees, then to his feet. He gripped the emerald harshly, whispering, "You will do what I say!" With a swift action, he performed another chaos control, then gasped outright, flying backwards into a mossy tree trunk. He fell. The emerald dropped some paces before him. Wild sparks of red chaos energy crackled all around the emerald.</p><p>"My—" For the first time in his life, chaos control had backfired. Shadow's entire body felt like it was burning from his heart outward. He cringed and managed to stand, but he had to lean against the trunk. The chaos emerald seemed to mock him, laying there, the energy sinking back down until the gem's flaring red light faded to normal.</p><p>He heard something overhead and shot his eyes upward. A tiny aircraft was speeding by through the lively winds toward the city.</p><p>"The Tornado?" Shadow turned to watch it go.</p><p>Unbelievable. Why was that nuisance and the fox coming to Central City?</p><p>"It makes sense, actually," he laboriously approached the emerald and snatched it hatefully from the earth.</p><p>Even Sonic would have had the brains to understand something was amiss. He'd probably contacted, or been contacted by that red echidna. However it happened, Sonic was back in Central City earlier than he was supposed to be. Wasn't his useless vacation a month long? It was only the end of the first week.</p><p>"Wonderful," Shadow muttered. Well, despite that hedgehog arriving, Shadow couldn't dwell on him. He had bigger problems now.</p><p>No one could know about his inability to harness the stronger chaos abilities. He could most likely use the lesser abilities to a highly limited extent, but definitely not anything like chaos control without near debilitating pain.</p><p>Shadow blistered in anger—and something else. This, too, must have been because of those foolish scientists debasing the chaos emerald. Oh, they'd feel his wrath soon enough!</p><p>He could breathe decently well once more and felt no more pain. Shadow tested a quick run. He was alright. Determined, he hurried back to the city. Yet—he was just distracted enough to go someplace without thinking, and then to look up with some displeasure and stomach knots at where he was. The hospital.</p><p>"Why am I here?"</p><p>No one could have brought him here except himself. It was a stupid question. He didn't have time to let his mind wander like this!</p><p>Right as he expected, his communicator started flashing. It was Rouge. For once, he didn't respond. Considering what to do, Shadow calmly stepped up to the door and slipped inside. It was the usual bustling lobby that greeted him, and then a woman behind the front counter who stood.</p><p>"May I help you?"</p><p>Shadow tried not to clench his fists when he responded, "Yes. I'd like to know how Amy Rose is doing? I brought her in just a little while ago. She has a concussion."</p><p>"And you are?"</p><p>Right. HIPPA regulation and all that. Without a legitimate proof of affiliation to her, they most likely wouldn't allow him to see her, or answer any of his inquiries.</p><p>Shadow felt like such an idiot. Why was he here, anyway? Curious and potentially dangerous things were happening. Sonic was no doubt greeting Rouge, hence why she'd called.</p><p>Self-disgusted at such emotions besting him, Shadow turned to leave, "Never mind."</p><p>Then, "Shadow! Wait!"</p><p>He turned rather quickly, revealing more emotion from his side than he potentially wanted to. There was Amy, walking quickly across the lobby—almost starting to jog. She expected him to run off, like Sonic did. Sonic was always leaving her in the dust. It was so rude and belittling. Even if Amy was annoying in his eyes, it didn't justify him treating her like that.</p><p>Shadow wasn't afraid of her nonsense and he surely wouldn't pull any escape maneuver. He could handle one female hedgehog—and his feelings.</p><p>The pink girl looked okay, but then she grasped one of the chairs in the lobby to balance herself. In a literal flash, Shadow had run over to her and taken hold of her upper arm. Her confused eyes sought the meaning of his action.</p><p>"You were losing your balance. You do have a concussion, don't you?"</p><p>"Well I—it's not your fault, Shadow."</p><p>"Answer my question."</p><p>Amy avoided his eyes, "Yes. But it's not so bad! The doctors said if I come back in few days for a checkup, I can go home right now. Just, be safe and careful and all that."</p><p>That made sense. Shadow slowly loosened his grip, "Alright. I'll take you home."</p><p>"No way!" Amy blustered. "I want to go see Sonic! I know he just got into the city."</p><p>So, she knew, too? Who was he kidding: of course that pink giggle of a girl knew. Someone had most likely contacted her about it. But, even if she'd heard nothing, her Sonic radar would have told her so. If Sonic jumped into an exploding volcano, she'd most likely dive head first, begging him to tell her he loved her before they burned up.</p><p>Since he was headed that way too, Shadow made a quick, perhaps brash decision, "I'm going to see Sonic and Rouge. Do you just want to come with me? It's not a social call, though."</p><p>The way her rich green eyes sparkled and the way she broke into a delighted smile churned his stomach, "Oh, you'd let me come along?"</p><p>That's right. Sonic often tried to exclude her, but Amy also always found ways of involving herself in his missions of heroism. His open invitation to include her in perhaps an extremely complicated and upsetting affair was something completely new to her. Albeit, she had no idea of how dangerous things could turn.</p><p>He hid a smirk. Amy could handle it. Sonic didn't give her much credit of anything. But, from observing her enough, he knew she was hardy in her heart.</p><p>"I'm not repeating myself," he sighed.</p><p>"Well—yes, I'd love to come! Wow, Shadow; you're nicer than I remember!"</p><p>"No, I'm not," but he thought only to her he could be this way. "Let's go."</p><p>Shadow turned to leave and he paused. Something warm and soft was in his hand. Bewildered, he glanced back. Amy's cheeks were almost as pink as her hair. She'd thrust her hand in his and was squeezing it enough to tell him that he better not release it. Release her.</p><p>Shadow's heart pulsed. Was she really so clueless to how he felt?</p><p>Maybe she'd just done it to prevent herself from falling. After all, a concussion wasn't a joke. Yes. That was probably all there was to that action.</p><p>Shadow walked out rather slowly with her and they took themselves down the steps to the sidewalk. With no warning, he scooped her up in his arms and dashed down through the sidewalks and streets for the Hotel le Beauté. Amy let out a squeal and then she was quiet. Automatically, she slid her arms up around his neck and held on.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. You Reap What You Sow</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>There he was! That cute blue thing with all the spines and that approachable smile. The adorable juvenile fox was there, too, exploring some new thing on a tablet. Rouge really liked those two in different but equally affectionate ways. Sonic was so fun and sparred well with her teasing. Tails was cute and innocent.</p>
<p>She lowered her eyelids halfway, staring shamelessly at Sonic as he sipped lemonade and munched on a burger. They were waiting. Hadn't been for very long, but it seemed like forever. He and Tails had landed on the roof of the hotel and she'd taken them right to her and Shadow's suite. And so they sat, chatting, and she, of course, flirting.</p>
<p>Rouge leaned forward a little, face cupped in her palm, "So, Sonic, how're things with your cute pink girlfriend?"</p>
<p>"Amy? We're just friends," he chuckled obliviously, taking another bite.</p>
<p>Rouge poked again, "Oh, please, you mean to tell me you have no romantic interest in such a sweet, energetic girl at all?"</p>
<p>"I may have at some point, but it's been quite a while! But it's cool. She understands."</p>
<p>No, she doesn't, Rouge wanted to remark. But this was always so funny to her, that Sonic refused to acknowledge the silly girl and the silly girl refused to accept that he would not accept her heart-felt love. Maybe they were both still too immature.</p>
<p>She leaned back, hand on the armrest, "So, what you're saying is that you're free."</p>
<p>Sonic shrugged, "I guess?"</p>
<p>Rouge knew she shouldn't continue, but she was bored and she really did think Sonic was just too cute not to tease, "Sonic, whaddya think about going on an adventure with me? I can show you all sorts of fun!"</p>
<p>After swallowing and blinking at Rouge, a tad uncomfortably, the blue hedgehog sort of understood the insinuation there and quickly chugged down the rest of his lemonade. Just then, the door burst open and there stood Shadow, glaring for no apparent reason, crossing his arms in a condescending manner.</p>
<p>"Hey, Shadow! Why'd you ignore my call?" Rouge fake pouted.</p>
<p>Shadow stepped in and to the side and—Amy entered after him?</p>
<p>No one was sure who was more shocked: Rouge tilted her head, for once with large, surprised eyes; Tails, tapping at his tablet, though he was looking at the two; Sonic, for gasping and pressing himself back in horror at his self-proclaimed girlfriend for being there; or Shadow, at himself for having brought her there.</p>
<p>Amy stood beside Shadow and took a second to absorb the room. Then she ran forward with her expected, "Sonic! Shadow said you'd be here and he was right! I missed you so much. How could you go on vacation without me?"</p>
<p>Sonic gasped down in his throat, but Amy was already upon him, arms around him and trying to nuzzle her face in his neck, all the while locking so tightly onto him that no amount of speed could break her off.</p>
<p>"A—Amy—Amy get off! Why are you even here?" He gasped and grabbed at her dress at the back, pulling in vain to peel her off.</p>
<p>"Oh, Sonic, you're so mean sometimes! You didn't even tell me that you were leaving last week for vacation! I had to find out from Tails! Where'd you go?"</p>
<p>Sonic's struggling continued. Rouge observed it for a couple seconds, then turned with a perplexed, bemused face to Shadow. He gave her no response. He just casually walked over to Rouge and sat next her, per his usual position.</p>
<p>Rouge merely remarked, "Shadow, I don't care to know just why you're in a bad mood, but I can see you are, as you brought that little piece of fun here. What I do care to know is this: are you sure you want Amy involved in this mess?"</p>
<p>"She'd have gotten involved sooner or later."</p>
<p>Meaning, Sonic was now involved, and that meant Amy would squeeze herself in until she was right in the middle of everything.</p>
<p>"Hey—Amy?"</p>
<p>Everyone looked back to Sonic and his cargo. Only, Amy was slightly up off of Sonic, in front of him, her eyes a bit glassy. She winced and gasped and started to teeter. Sonic caught her.</p>
<p>"What's wrong with her?" He looked to Shadow with the question.</p>
<p>"She has a concussion," he informed.</p>
<p>"You brought her here when she had a concussion?" Sonic's tone was accusatory, upset. Shadow enjoyed it.</p>
<p>"What, you don't want your girl to sit in your lap so you can comfort her? Shouldn't you stroke her head? It might help her concussion heal faster. Wait, maybe you should let her sit next to me. She might crack her head further against your thick, dense skull."</p>
<p>Sonic didn't respond immediately or give him any dirty looks. That alone stunned Shadow. Then he almost forgot to breathe for some seconds, when Sonic slowly stood up and gently helped Amy to her feet.</p>
<p>He spoke with genuine concern, "Amy, how'd you get a concussion?"</p>
<p>She sought Shadow, eyes frightened. What: was she worried about what Sonic would say? Or scared that he'd hurt her if she told everyone what had happened? Shadow hoped not the second one. What, did everyone still see him like he was that much of a monster?</p>
<p>He felt depressed and bitter and grit, "I inflicted it on her. Accidentally."</p>
<p>No one spoke again. Then Sonic shocked Shadow more when he tenderly took Amy's hands and started to walk her over to—to him?</p>
<p>"Amy, go sit by Shadow. He should look after you since he hurt you. But don't worry: I'll be in town regular now, so I'll check on you often."</p>
<p>"I don't want to sit by Shadow," Amy mumbled, then gasped and again sought Shadow's reaction. "I—I'm sorry, Shadow! I didn't mean anything by it. You just—you know how I like Sonic."</p>
<p>Rouge cut in, "Look, everyone, as much as this display is so dramatic and intriguing, settle down. We have to debrief about Project Miracle. Just put the pink porcelain doll somewhere and let's talk."</p>
<p>Awkwardly, Amy stunned everyone by releasing Sonic's hand and very nervously pushed herself up on the couch to Shadow's left. She didn't look at him and her form was overly stiff.</p>
<p>Shadow hated himself so much, but he had no idea why this time.</p>
<p>He was so secretly glad when Rouge spoke again, "Here's what's going on. I've been observing Project Miracle for a while. I'm almost completely convinced that GUN's doing something highly unethical—though I'm not sure what. Not like this would be the first time on GUN's account either, though they may have really overstepped this time. All Shadow and I know right now is that, after they cut that golden chaos emerald, chaos energy has become unbalanced and randomly violent. This could become a perfect storm if the chaos energy isn't fixed. But, the damage has already been done. Even if we destroy all of Project Miracle, it won't fix the cut in the chaos emerald."</p>
<p>Sonic broke in, "Knuckles told me that the master emerald was acting up pretty bad. Do you think if we brought that one emerald to it, that the master emerald could fix it?"</p>
<p>"Who knows? But that's the next thing we should find out. Right now the question is, is everyone okay to break into GUN's facilities with Shadow and I and steal the golden chaos emerald?"</p>
<p>"Remember, if we do that, our GUN careers are over."</p>
<p>That surprised Amy, who whipped her seeking eyes to Shadow's stoic face. The sudden action made her dizzy. She lay her head on the armrest. Shadow noticed, but didn't react.</p>
<p>"Wow, Shadow," Tails finally spoke. "Would you and Rouge really be willing to do that? You've spent so much time working there and doing great things for everyone."</p>
<p>"Working for GUN is just a temporary thing I chose to do for the time being," he coldly responded.</p>
<p>Rouge knew he was full of it. Shadow valued being a GUN agent. Finding "his place" was a big thing for him and being with GUN gave him an identity to refine. If he left it, he'd be what? Just Shadow? And what was that? The ultimate life form. But that wasn't really an identity. She knew he'd figured that out some time ago. The ultimate life form was a title, what he was; it wasn't who he was. The being he was could only be discovered deep in his soul where he kept all his hopes and desires hidden.</p>
<p>Mostly. She'd seen cracks of "him" under all that black fur. Shadow guarded himself as she would guard a priceless jewel.</p>
<p>"Oh," Tails said sheepishly.</p>
<p>Cute kid.</p>
<p>Sonic huffed with a grin, "We can handle it, right, Shadow? What with your chaos control and all those other shiny chaos things you can do. And me with my speed! It'll be no problem!"</p>
<p>Just a hint, Rouge thought she saw Shadow squirm. He kept his arms crossed and glared at nothing in particular. But he also didn't say anything.</p>
<p>She interjected again, "No. We can't do that kind of thing yet. We have to have a plan for after we steal it. What if we get it and take it to the master emerald but the big gem can't fix it?"</p>
<p>"Then maybe we could gather the other chaos emeralds and together they could all fix the one emerald? Like, calm down the one chaos emerald? We can take all seven chaos emeralds at once to Angel Island." Amy hopefully offered.</p>
<p>Sonic shook his head, "I don't think that sounds right. I've never heard of chaos emeralds healing other chaos emeralds. Or the master emerald doing that, either. I just know that the master emerald can subdue the chaos emeralds, so if we brought the golden emerald, maybe it could also be subdued?"</p>
<p>Rouge again added, "Still, that wouldn't fix the problem. The emeralds are reacting very violently. That golden emerald has to be fixed. Not subdued."</p>
<p>No one knew what to say to this. It was uncharted ground and there were no clear answers. Sonic was agitated. Tails was hastily trying to research related topics online.</p>
<p>Rouge stood, "Well, my suggestion is this: you all stay put in Central City and wait until I come back. I've been—ah—observing the project up close. Maybe gathering more information is the best thing for us to do right now. No need to be overly hasty, right? I think we have a few days, at least, to do this right. I mean, the project's been in the works for a decade!"</p>
<p>They concurred, though everyone shared the sentiment that the faster this was resolved, the better.</p>
<p>"I'll be going then. Wait until you hear from me!" And with a sarcastic movement of her legs, Rouge waved and took her leave.</p>
<p>It was a very silent four that remained, unsure what to do. Amy was the one to make a timid suggestion first, "Uh, Sonic, did you want to come over for dinner or something? Or stay here with Tails?"</p>
<p>Not unkindly, he didn't even have to think when he responded, "With Tails of course! You're unwell, too, so I'd rather stay out of your way."</p>
<p>Amy's shoulder dropped a very small amount. Shadow noticed and, again, felt upset at Sonic's oblivion to how hurt his chuckling response had just been.</p>
<p>It was better, actually, if he or someone was there to make sure she got around alright. Shadow slowly looked from Sonic to her and felt himself growing fed up again. Waiting was so obnoxious, but having to listen to those two any further was even worse.</p>
<p>He stood up, "Amy, I'll take you home."</p>
<p>"Really?"</p>
<p>"Yes. Let's go."</p>
<p>Without any further remark, she got up and walked out with him. It was amazing that Shadow accompanied her all the way down to the hotel lobby himself! Then—then he exited with her, too! Amy tried to focus, though her head felt so weird and sometimes her vision blurred or shook. But when that happened, every time she stumbled, Shadow caught her. He made no remark about it, so not once was did she feel awkward.</p>
<p>Once outside, he grabbed her wrist, his voice soft, "Rose, I'm not sure you understood how serious things are, but they're very serious. What's going on might not end up like a typical adventure you and Sonic go on together."</p>
<p>"I—I did understand," she managed to look him honestly in the face.</p>
<p>Few people did that, let alone keep their gaze with his. Amy blinked at him, waiting for a further explanation. He gave none, yet she still observed his face. He kept himself from kissing her forehead. In fact, he took a single step away to suppress his emotions.</p>
<p>"Are you alright, Shadow?"</p>
<p>He tensed and then relaxed, came close and picked her up again. He didn't speak, not even after arriving at a thirty-story apartment building and entering the lobby with her. In the elevator, nothing. In the hall, nothing.</p>
<p>But at her door, he informed, "I'll be by tomorrow to see how you're doing."</p>
<p>"What? Weren't you going to sleep here tonight, since Sonic and Tails are at the hotel?" She gasped in surprise, turning, but all she received was a gust of wind as Shadow escaped as fast as he could.</p>
<p>~~~~~</p>
<p>He'd failed. Failed! How could he tell his wife? An entire labor of a decade meant nothing. Failing her meant everything. So what about the millions of funding from GUN and now from Eggman. So what that he'd let everyone down and that there wouldn't be a cure for thousands of incurable illnesses. Failing his wife—failing his son—was unimaginably upsetting.</p>
<p>Richard sat down in a small silver chair before he collapsed on the floor of the laboratory. Sobs racked his frame. He propped his elbows on the kiosk and buried his unwashed face in his hands.</p>
<p>There was only one way Project Miracle could succeed now. Just one way. One evil, unfathomable, horrendous way. One merciless, sacrificial way.</p>
<p>The thought of what he'd have to do if he stepped down that path destroyed Richard.</p>
<p>Then, with the worst timing imaginable, a call was rumbling in on his private phone from a confidential, untraceable line.</p>
<p>Richard clenched his jaw. He couldn't ignore the call. Painfully, he tapped to answer.</p>
<p>A gruff sort of malicious voice came on, "Director, I've been hearing that some things with Project Miracle aren't going according to your carefully-devised plan. Do tell me that such gossip is false?"</p>
<p>Richard didn't bother to ask where Eggman had heard such things. That evil monster always had ears in places no one would ever find. It was pointless to say anything about it.</p>
<p>Instead, Richard hid a deep sigh and the forlornness in his voice the best he could, "There's no reason to worry, Doctor. We've just come across the latest hiccup. We'll get past it. You know how that is."</p>
<p>"Oh, indeed," Eggman grunted. "Well, remember, if you don't succeed, I'll ensure everyone knows just what you and your lovely wife have been playing at down there in your metal hole. I've ensured GUN doesn't have any real idea of what you've been up to, but that can change in a second. And I'll also ruin both of your careers and reputations and destroy everything GUN's been working on for decades—everything. Not just your little project. Do you want to see your precious GUN disappear in one giant explosion?"</p>
<p>Richard was silent. His heart felt like it would fall into his bones and he'd die.</p>
<p>Eggman let out a malicious chuckle, "No. You don't. So you better get working again! I'll expect an update in two days!"</p>
<p>He hung up. The laboratory screamed with silence. Richard couldn't move. His miscalculation hadn't been about his blood, that it had ended up incompatible. Or that he'd taken on Eggman as the mysterious donor. Or that they'd failed to consider that the chaos emerald might react in some negative manner.</p>
<p>His fateful miscalculation had happened far before that.</p>
<p>His chest heaved and he broke into a sob. Everything was over. This laboratory. His ambitions and hope and innocent dreams. Over. It was all a mistake. What laughed at him in the face—the only path now for this project—was nothing less than a hell. If he took that path, he'd live everyday with fire in his soul, but he'd deserve it.</p>
<p>But forcing such pain onto him wouldn't have been the true punishment.</p>
<p>His miscalculation was that he'd ever decided to embark on this foolish enterprise to begin with!</p>
<p>"No. I won't let it happen!" Richard stood on shaking legs and swallowed to try to steady himself. "I won't," he repeated a few times, empty in tone and soul. There was nothing now. His mind was filled with the only, the one final thing left to do to ensure no one would fall victim to his monstrous work.</p>
<p>Richard tapped a few buttons on the screens and then slowly walked over to the glass panels before the sealed off room where that growth, that specimen yet lay, slowly rotting in its own body. Repulsive thing! It had seemed so beautiful to him before, a symbol of healing for potentially millions. Now it was a sickening, vile sack that must not survive!</p>
<p>Renewed with determination, yet shedding tears, Richard turned the power off to the stasis room. He then picked up speed as his heart beat faster and faster. He had to prevent it from happening!</p>
<p>The only way was—</p>
<p>Halting, he thought about the best way to do it, to destroy the entire laboratory in one thorough swoop. The easiest idea came to him. Richard ripped some wiring from a set of panels on the floor and ran them together, forcing a spark to react and smoke to rise. In a few minutes, the alarm started to chime and the sprinklers above showered water down on him. Just what he wanted.</p>
<p>Richard opened the panel to the main intranet system in the laboratory. GUN had none of these records. Everything was stored here, away from connected internet databases, hence away from external hacking or theft of the material. The downside was just this: Richard ripping guts out of the machine so that the water from the sprinklers electrocuted it and sent shock waves through the entire system, causing a complete crash. That meant instant and irrecoverable loss of priceless research.</p>
<p>But that wasn't good enough. Richard wiped water and sweat from his brow. He thought of his wife and his son and smiled a tint. This was what he deserved. There was no use lamenting anything now.</p>
<p>To ensure everything was absolutely destroyed, Richard pulled a small, metal device out of his pocket. The top was dome-shaped and the bottom of the suction device was flat. He slapped it down atop the panel of the main computer and tapped it. The little, unobtrusive device started blinking slowly, then faster and faster and faster until the green light turned a solid red.</p>
<p>Richard sat in his chair and waited, closing his eyes, mumbling, "You reap what you sow."</p>
<p>A massive electrocution sparked and burst from the device, devouring everything, including him.</p>
<p>~~~~~</p>
<p>Rouge stood and backed a step. That Director Marshall scientist was losing his mind! How'd he been awake for so long and worked so tirelessly all this time? No wonder he was sitting there so—wait. Someone was calling at this hour?</p>
<p>The scientist picked up and—Rouge suppressed a horrified gasp. It was Eggman! She listened, growing more dismayed and stunned every second. Unbelievable! The secret donor was Eggman? Her heart sank. Project Miracle that she'd had such hopes for! It felt personal, her disappointment, though Rouge knew it wasn't. She shouldn't have been so naïve to have placed faith for a good outcome for this project. Or, cynical as she felt just then, for any GUN project.</p>
<p>She lingered after the call ended. The director didn't move for some seconds, but as soon as he stood and ripped cords from a panel in the floor, Rouge leaned in, curious.</p>
<p>She whispered, "What are you doing?"</p>
<p>It all happened so fast: the sprinklers, the man's apparent insanity. Swallowing, Rouge stood, realizing what he was planning. She dashed back through the small tunnels to make her escape, but she knew she wouldn't make it out in time. That device he'd produced from his pocket wouldn't just destroy all the electric devices in the laboratory. It would devastate the entire building and kill anything organic within range.</p>
<p>For once in her life, Rouge nearly panicked, pulling up her communicator. "Shadow!" She panted, voice imperiled.</p>
<p>The next second, in some strange, tangled mass of light, Shadow appeared, grabbing her. She barely had time to gasp at how hot and tight he felt before he yelled, "chaos control!" and they both disappeared again.</p>
<p>They fell out on the sand somewhere, in the middle of the empty night. Rouge gasped for air for some seconds, phantoms of some kind of energy shooting painfully through her. As it subsided, she came to her senses, pushing herself up, looking about, "Shadow?"</p>
<p>Where was he?</p>
<p>"Shadow!" She stood and whirled around, seeking for him. But it was so dark! Rain was falling thick and windless. There weren't many light posts and none nearby on the beach. It was just wet sand, hard to walk in, and humidity in the rain, and she calling for him.</p>
<p>Then nearby, a soft groan.</p>
<p>Rouge's ears tingled. She found Shadow immediately. He was laying in the sand, panting, hot to the touch.</p>
<p>"What happened, Shadow?" She rolled him onto his side and tried to shield him with her wings.</p>
<p>"It's that golden chaos emerald," he grit between hard breathing. "I—I can't use a lot of chaos energy. It rips me up."</p>
<p>His voice, soft and seething over such a loss of ability upset him more than his physical pain, Rouge knew. He had known then that coming to rescue her would have done this to him. And that must have been what he'd been checking the previous day. He'd have come anyway, most likely, purely out of a sense of duty to a workmate. However, Rouge preferred to think he'd done it also with a small amount of personal affection for her.</p>
<p>But she didn't bother to speak. She grabbed him under his arms and pulled Shadow to his feet. With some effort, she took him to a covered bench and set him down, positioning herself next to him to keep him from falling over.</p>
<p>"Your pain using chaos powers would have complicated things," she softly spoke. "But I don't think it will anymore. Director Richard fried the entire laboratory and killed himself."</p>
<p>"What?" Shadow for once half-gasped.</p>
<p>Rouge squeezed his shoulder in a friendly manner, "Relax, Shadow. We'll stay here until you feel better."</p>
<p>She needed time to calm down herself and think about just what had happened. And Shadow needed to heal and get his strength back. What he did would stay with her for the rest of her life. He'd knowingly placed himself in the path of agonizing pain for her. It was a gesture she'd repay him someday, but never use against him or bring up in any conversation. That was how their peculiar friendship was.</p>
<p>Shadow, leaning against her, trying to concentrate and rest, knew Rouge would never speak of this. He was incredibly grateful that she said nothing else, and that she was giving him this time to recover. He didn't even need to tell her not to reveal his new handicap to anyone. She wouldn't.</p>
<p>~~~~~</p>
<p>Dylan awoke to a gasp from some sort of animalistic cry from his mother. Alarmed, he rose quickly and hurried down the hall to the kitchen. His mother had her hand on her phone, tears trickling down her face, her eyes popping wide. She was looking straight forward, but at nothing. Slowly, her fingers began to tremble.</p>
<p>Dylan approached her, "Mom? What's wrong?" Just asking her intimidated him. His mother wasn't exactly the soft, sweet type.</p>
<p>But she didn't even budge. Dylan had to pull on her arm, and then she gasped and turned to him.</p>
<p>"I—I'm sorry. What's wrong, Mom?"</p>
<p>"What's wrong?" She echoed vacantly. "I don't know." Walking around him, she repeated in a dream, "I don't know."</p>
<p>He stood there perplexed and afraid for some reason. Berry flew over and sat on his shoulder, bringing Dylan back to the present.</p>
<p>Isolena had gone into her room, but she returned with a rain coat on. "Dylan, go to school today," her voice was stern, though something still lay beneath it that troubled her son. "I have to go to the lab. I may not be back for a couple days. But I expect you to carry on with everything like you normally do."</p>
<p>"I will. Will I see Dad soon?"</p>
<p>Her body snapped rigid and Isolena turned and blinked at Dylan in a blank sort of way. No response. She slid out and shut the door.</p>
<p>"I wish I knew what was going on so I could help in some way," Dylan sadly sighed. Well, what could he do? Just what he always did, like she told him to, so his parents wouldn't have to worry about him, too. Therefore, Dylan continued on with his usual routine: school, baking, social media, relaxing, homework. It was just another day for him, minus the persistent summer rain that kept him from visiting the beach that day.</p>
<p>He lay down that night oblivious to the stress his parents had been dealing with.</p>
<p>~~~~~</p>
<p>What met Isolena was a charred, dead, wet laboratory with not a spark left of accessible data in any of the computers. None of the intranet backups had been saved. None of the hard drives could be recovered.</p>
<p>Her heart skipped a beat, but she shook her nerves off and stepped inside the mess regardless. A cleanup crew was present, and when she entered, they immediately attempted to stop her.</p>
<p>One of them half blocked her, "Please, you shouldn't see this."</p>
<p>"See what? I've seen quite a few ghastly things in my days. Move aside."</p>
<p>"Please—"</p>
<p>Isolena pushed the woman aside and stepped around the circular lab to the back. She saw it first, a charred hand. Then the arm. She hesitated, then steeled herself and walked completely around to view the body of what used to be her husband. There wasn't an inch of him that hadn't been fried from the electrocution. It was as the cleanup employee had warned: burnt. Charred. A husk of what used to be a brilliant man, a brilliant mind. Just like many other bodies she'd passed on her way in. GUN was in the middle of fixing the electrocuted systems in this complex and gathering the corpses of the victims. The power and main systems had already been restored. Her husband had certainly left an impression as he'd exited the stage of this mortal coil.</p>
<p>A weaker person might have thrown up or collapsed from the carnage she'd passed on her journey here, or by seeing such a corpse rigid near her feet. She just stood there, mind swirling, then blanking for a few seconds.</p>
<p>Isolena didn't lower herself down to the corpse. Her eyes turned cold, her defense mechanism against any rushes of emotion. Her husband was dead. He wouldn't return to her.</p>
<p>Turning to look at the glass separating her from the room their specimen had been laying in, Isolena stepped calmly over to it and peered in. Something was odd. She squinted, but couldn't be sure from this distance. There was no point in any pretense of sterility. The chamber had been deactivated and completely contaminated since the glass had shattered.</p>
<p>Therefore, pulling out a portable scanner from her pocket, Isolena entered the narrow space and squatted beside the small glass casket. Never had she had the opportunity to see the specimen clearly. It had always lain here, covered by the cold fog of near freezing temperatures. She'd seen various computerized scans, but never this—this—</p>
<p>She knew what it was supposed to represent as a growth, but hadn't thought it would actually have grown and formed so perfectly. And still look so perfect, so—</p>
<p>"Is it breathing?" Her own breath hitched.</p>
<p>The specimen's chest rose and fell slowly, evenly, as if in deep slumber. No. It wasn't possible! Isolena rushed to place her scanner over the body and see what it would reveal. The specimen was alive! It was in a similar state as before: slow erosion, in desperate need of a replacement heart and brain. But otherwise, it seemed to have been unaffected by the electricity. Why—how?</p>
<p>Being this near something so marvelous, Isolena experienced a moment of weakness. She reached in and ran her hand over the belly of the thing. The creature was pale, minty green, a fully-formed, physically mature hedgehog.</p>
<p>"Is it the chaos powder that preserved you from the effects of the electricity?" She whispered as if expecting the sleeping hedgehog to wake up and respond to her.</p>
<p>Then, the sheer marvel in her eyes waned and only coldness remained. Isolena slowly returned to her full height and glared down at the helpless little creature. All this had happened because of this thing. Her husband had worked tirelessly for a decade to bring a miracle to the world. He'd made a miscalculation and been driven into despair because of this growth. But she wouldn't. It was a waste to let the project disappear now. In fact, she would ensure she reached fruition for him.</p>
<p>Determined, ice in her very soul, Isolena returned to the main laboratory. Her three colleagues had collected there. They were stunned to see where she'd come from, but she approached without any surprise.</p>
<p>"The databases are all destroyed," she stated. "But Project Miracle isn't lost. I have an external backup. We'll move to another lab and continue. I have a solution for the heart and brain problem, which will also be resolved before tomorrow night. When that's complete, the creature will be fine and we should be able to extract the first sample for a clinical trial. I'll go put in a request for a lab. We'll start moving everything there as soon as we have clearance."</p>
<p>How she spoke, how she looked, was incomprehensible to her colleagues. Isolena showed no grief or shock. Her tone was normal and she walked past them smooth as she always was. None of them spoke. Wordlessly, they watched her walk up the steps out of the destroyed lab and down the hall out of sight.</p>
<p>Once Isolena was alone in her office, her phone rumbled. Curious, she glanced at it. Unknown number. She ignored it, sitting to begin her laboratory request. The phone rumbled again. That same number. Suspicious, she picked up, "Isolena Marshall speaking."</p>
<p>The voice on the other end was a bit low, growling in dissatisfaction, "Ms Marshall, I heard that your husband—I mean late husband—succeeded in destroying your entire laboratory for Project Miracle?"</p>
<p>Isolena's eyes narrowed. She'd heard this voice before and was not intimidated, "Doctor Eggman. You spoke to my husband late last night, didn't you?"</p>
<p>"I may have," he smoothly responded.</p>
<p>"What did you tell him?"</p>
<p>Eggman chuckled, "I like your salt! Maybe it's you I should have been communicating with all this time."</p>
<p>"Answer my question," she stated.</p>
<p>"Oh, I was! I merely told your husband to hurry it up, or I'd ruin the both of you—your research, GUN entirely—everything."</p>
<p>So, that's what happened. Eggman had driven her husband to ruin himself. Rage festered in Isolena's chest and she half spit, "You killed my husband."</p>
<p>"It's not my problem he cracked! You better listen closely, Ms Marshall." Gone was his teasing and malicious tone. There was only dead threats from Eggman now, "You better get Project Miracle up and running within a week, because I'm tired of siphoning my money to your work. If you don't finish in that time table, I'll not only destroy you and your project, but I'll destroy all of GUN and I'll publish to the entire world about what unethical monsters you both actually were! Even if you don't care about your own reputation, I'll sully your husband's name so thoroughly, that people will despise him a century from now!"</p>
<p>"Threatening me isn't wise, Doctor," Isolena dangerously responded and hung up on him. After a half minute of her staring at her monitor, she heaved and grabbed at her hair, finally sobbing.</p>
<p>The project was all she had left. What did that lunatic think she would do? Go home and give up? No. In fact, there was only one narrow street Isolena had left to navigate with the project. She would do it for herself and for her husband. Nothing else mattered.</p>
<p>~~~~~</p>
<p>Still more rain. Such loud, persistent pattering. Usually, Shadow found the sound to be comforting. Now, not so much. He was alone, having separated from Rouge at the beach after he'd felt recovered enough. Perhaps it was rude, but he was seriously not in the mood to return with her just yet to another discussion about what they were going to do. Also, that annoying blue hedgehog was at their hotel suite. Right now, he could tolerate no teasing.</p>
<p>Rouge would respect him about his new problem, but he just hadn't been able to stay in her presence longer in that moment. That raw moment. He'd escaped.</p>
<p>His body still felt messed up. He could run and jump, spin dash—do all those regular physical things. But he knew his abilities were still reduced. No one could help him. He already knew what was wrong. There was no point to discuss it with anyone. The way to fix it was to fix the chaos emeralds.</p>
<p>That thought was upsetting, for no one knew how to do that.</p>
<p>But, as Shadow had told a certain pink hedgehog he'd check up on her, and seeing that he secretly really wanted to be in her presence for even just a minute, he ran up before her apartment complex. Then hesitated. The sun had risen an hour or so ago, but it was still early. Was she awake?</p>
<p>"What am I doing?" He questioned his priorities, then walked forward. For once, he was going to do just what he wanted, world aside.</p>
<p>Shadow went into the lobby and took the elevator up. Stepping out, then at Amy's door, he knocked. Surprisingly, Amy answered just seconds after, fully dressed and smelling just a hint of something nice, some kind of fragrance. She wasn't wearing her traditional red dress, but a slightly more form-fitting, dark red dress that ended a little above her knees. She also wore maroon, over-the-knee stockings, matching arm covers that extended to fingerless gloves, and black and pink sneakers.</p>
<p>Shadow blinked at her. She looked so very incredibly nice. Comfortable. What she was wearing was certainly a more maneuverable outfit.</p>
<p>"Shadow?" She almost stupidly asked.</p>
<p>He focused, "Good morning. I came to see if you were doing alright."</p>
<p>"Oh—oh yes! Yes I am. But you—were you out in the rain?"</p>
<p>Right. He'd gotten sand all over him and been thoroughly soaked. It had dried and most of the sand had fallen off, but he still guessed he looked rough.</p>
<p>"Yes. Well, since you're fine, I'll be going."</p>
<p>"No—wait! You can't go off like that. Won't you get sick?"</p>
<p>The question amused Shadow. As the words fell from her lips, Amy must have also realized how absurd the idea was of Shadow falling prey to any type of disease. She shut her mouth, though he turned back to look a little oddly at her.</p>
<p>Then she changed her approach, "Come inside. Please dry off, then you can go."</p>
<p>"I don't need to do that."</p>
<p>"I insist," she calmly persisted.</p>
<p>Shadow marveled at how mature she suddenly seemed, how collected and adamant and confident she was that she would get her way in this matter. He could just run off. He could shake the remnants of water from his spines all over her. He could make some edgy remark.</p>
<p>He stood and did nothing.</p>
<p>Rolling her eyes, Amy grabbed his hand and pulled him inside, much to his chagrin.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Heart of Transformation</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>To her expectation and satisfaction, the clearance for her new lab request had arrived about thirty minutes ago. Isolena stepped around her desk and confidently walked down the various halls that lead to where she was just about to fulfill her husband's dreams. Her soul had become nothing but this. Nothing would deter her or distract her.</p>
<p>She would not be intimidated and harassed the way Eggman had done to her husband.</p>
<p>Entering the new lab, she reviewed the progress. This lab wasn't circular shaped like their previous one; it was, literally, a perfect square; and it had no sectioned-off sterile compartment in which to place their growth. But that was no issue. The growth itself and the chamber it yet lay within had been moved already. The entirety of the small stasis chamber lay against the far left wall, hooked up and ice-cold once more. Tomorrow, they would no longer need the chamber at all.</p>
<p>Pleased with the progress, Isolena descended the small ramp into the central area of the lab where a few beds and a large computer terminal had been arranged.</p>
<p>"What's left to finish?"</p>
<p>"Not much," her male coworker, Mr. Cray, informed. Now that her husband was gone, he'd become the second in seniority, the position she'd just resigned for Director. "One more hour and everything will be fine."</p>
<p>"Good. Here's my external copy of the data."</p>
<p>The man's eyes popped with shock. Right. She hadn't divulged to anyone that she'd betrayed her husband's trust by making a backup just two days ago. Isolena had felt a pang of hypocritical guilt when she'd done it. But she felt none of that now. She'd been right to require Richard's complete trust and then to break it herself.</p>
<p>"I'll—I'll load a copy into the intranet," Mr. Cray gingerly took the tiny slit of a disk from her.</p>
<p>"Alright. I'll be back tonight with a heart and brain. Be ready for invasive surgery upon my immediate return. We'll only have a small window to make the transplant before the organs suffer damage. The specimen must have healthy replacements to recover."</p>
<p>"Alright. But, where are you getting the organs from?"</p>
<p>She passed him a spear of a look that shut him up. Without responding, Isolena left the lab and exited GUN, heading for home.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>If not for the negative view Rouge now held for Project Miracle, she would have been impressed, even admired that Marshall woman's abilities and determination to carry it on. It looked like all of this wasn't going to end so easily with the explosion of the old lab, like she'd thought just hours ago. If only it had been so!</p>
<p>But there was no use wishing for fantasies. Rouge prepared for her next move. But first, she had to inform the team of the latest developments.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>Exhausted, he let himself fall back on the sofa and let out a happy exhale. To work with his hands and to make something beautiful and tasty was always the highlight of Dylan's week. He'd outdone himself this time! He felt it in his stiff limbs, but he was extremely pleased with himself.</p>
<p>Berry settled atop the back of the couch and smiled down at his friend.</p>
<p>"Triple-layer cake for the charity auction: it's pretty nice, right?"</p>
<p>The chao hopped a bit and tilted his head.</p>
<p>"Don't you dare lick it or anything," Dylan fake glared at his pal. Berry knew him well, so the little guy only stuck his tongue out and made faces. "Hey!" The boy shot up from the couch and progressed to chase his squishy friend around—until the door opened, causing them both to abruptly pause.</p>
<p>In walked his mother, disheveled, shoulder-length, naturally-wavy brown hair loose around her ears and eyes; pale, her face set like stone. She cast Dylan a confused sort of frown, then cleared her expression and shut the front door.</p>
<p>Dylan carefully asked, "Mom? Are you alright? I thought Dad would be able to come home with you this time?"</p>
<p>"No. He's busy," she responded without missing a beat. Her tone was flat, her movements a bit sluggish.</p>
<p>In times past, she'd at least ask Dylan one question about how he was. Some bland expectation of motherly care: school was fine? Did he make any friends yet? How was his baking hobby? He'd respond with the expected vague niceties that all was fine; and usually that would prompt few more polite questions from her. She'd move about the kitchen doing this or that and he'd sit at the table and describe random things he'd seen and heard.</p>
<p>This time, Isolena walked past him without any further words. Her eyes seemed to avoid him, which troubled her son. At her bedroom door, she stopped and turned her body so her back was to the wall, and she eyed Dylan head to toe with that puzzled face she'd had when she'd first stepped into the house.</p>
<p>"Mom, are you sure you're okay?" Dylan hesitated.</p>
<p>She shook her head, "Fine. Don't stay up too late."</p>
<p>She softly closed the door. There was no sound within. Dylan stood at the entry of the hall, blinking at her door, brow furled. This had been the longest duration of time he'd gone without seeing his father and it worried him quite a bit. Trying to knock, to gain entry to her room wouldn't work. He'd learned that years ago. If either of his parents didn't want to tell him something, nothing he could try would compel them otherwise.</p>
<p>Instead, he'd just ended up in trouble.</p>
<p>Trying to shrug off how unsettled he felt, Dylan positioned himself before the kitchen sink, rinsing dishes to place in the dishwasher. He kept his mind occupied by cleaning up all his baking mess, sweeping, and placing a glass lid over the cake.</p>
<p>On his way to his own room, Dylan gave Berry two fresh, halved blueberries and smiled. Maybe his mother would feel better once she'd sunk some sleep into her weary bones.</p>
<p>"I'll ask her tomorrow morning," he lay down on his bed and closed his eyes, sighing atop the soft blanket. Berry dropped to the right side of his pillow and fell almost immediately asleep.</p>
<p>The distant sounds of sirens blaring and the honking of city life at night didn't bother Dylan. He drifted off.</p>
<p>Then—he grunted, slapping his hand atop something—skin? Another hand?</p>
<p>His body automatically reacted, he bolting up, but he was shoved harshly back to the pillow. Dylan's eyes widened and he groaned, then he felt weak. Something was over his mouth and nose. Fabric? He couldn't make anything out clearly in the dark. Only a golden beam of light from his open bedroom door outlined some things in his room. One of them was someone sitting on his bed in front of him, a cloth extended in their hand over his face.</p>
<p>It looked like a woman—his mother? What was she—</p>
<p>Dylan pressed his hands over her wrists again, but weaker. And weaker. He fell limp, blinking deliriously up at her. Those eyes. Those cold eyes. Unblinking. Her mouth was pressed tight, brow lowered, eyes staring with hatred at—at him?</p>
<p>Confused, Dylan tried to speak again. Only some guttural plead escaped his throat. She pressed harder. He faded, eyes fluttering to stay open. But they closed.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>Conflicted, Rouge observed from the roof adjacent to the laboratory complex, a black car with completely tinted windows drive up to the garage, then slide inside. She knew that Marshall woman was inside the car, but why'd she gone out and why had she returned just a few hours later? Frustrated, Rouge slid down to a lower section of roof, completely hidden from view from anyone on the ground. She hadn't expected Project Miracle to move so quickly into a new lab—a lab she hadn't yet hacked into to gain the access codes so she could slide in and spy on them!</p>
<p>Things were moving too quickly. Her own underestimation of that human woman upset her.</p>
<p>She tapped her communicator, "Shadow, I think Project Miracle is up to round two of whatever horrible things they have planned. I think we should chaos control into the lab and steal the emerald now. Whatever they're planning, we can't let them finish it."</p>
<p>Oh. Right. Shadow wasn't in a position to use chaos control. Well, technically, he could, but—</p>
<p>Rouge swallowed, "I'm sorry, Shadow. Somehow, we need to get into the lab, though."</p>
<p>His tone was smooth, unaffected, "We can just blast our way in, but it will take a while and we might get hurt."</p>
<p>"I don't like the idea of sullying my hands," she quipped.</p>
<p>"How did you get in the first time?"</p>
<p>"I hacked into their intranet using my seniority security clearances and extracted their passcodes. I can do it again, but it may take hours—like the first time did. That's fine, except that we may not have as much time as I thought we did."</p>
<p>There was a pause, Shadow then sounding like he'd turned away, his voice a bit distanced, "Sonic, does your fox friend have anything technological we could utilize? Wait, where is he, anyway?"</p>
<p>Rouge could hear Sonic just enough as he shrugged, "I have no idea about all that tech stuff, but Tails is with Amy right now."</p>
<p>A pause, then an angry Shadow, "Are you so dense not to understand I'm asking you to call him and find out?" He scowled and returned to Rouge, "You should work as fast as you can to get into that lab. I have to go."</p>
<p>"Okay. Bye."</p>
<p>She kept her position, thinking about how she'd go about her next action. Narrowing her eyes in genuine anger, feeling used by GUN, Rouge whipped herself up and took to the skies.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>Disbelief and horror were feelings that could only be described as gross understatements. There was no word in any language to properly fill the overwhelming emotions that the three scientists felt as they stood in the lab, surgery tools ready. One of them felt back for a metal chair, falling, picking himself up to sit on the furniture.</p>
<p>They'd felt varying levels of intimidation for the Director's wife from the very beginning of their project. She'd been an often cold, calculating, unemotional person, logic and their goal trumping everything else in her life. She'd presented unsympathetic and ethically-questionable propositions before and carried some out. And never had she shown even a percentage of doubt, worry, or regret over the future of Project Miracle, or of her own vicious actions.</p>
<p>She was as close as a flesh-and-blood individual could be to a machine, at times. They'd marveled and even disliked her through the years. Though, all things considering, they'd been able to wave off their personal opinions of her for the sake of Project Miracle.</p>
<p>This? Not so!</p>
<p>Isolena stood before them, likewise attired in a surgical mask and scrubs, staring at the three as if they were being absurd to feel like actual compassionate human beings. Their hesitation disgusted her, as she monotonously questioned, "Are you three going to assist? We're running out of time."</p>
<p>"But—"</p>
<p>"Mr. Cray, you are as deep in this as I am. Do you want to know who our anonymous donor is? I can assure you, it's best if you don't know; but not knowing will not save you from disgrace and death if we don't succeed."</p>
<p>Mr. Cray's reality had just turned into a perfect hell. He stared at her with eyes popping from his sockets. He burst, "But this is your son!"</p>
<p>"We all must make sacrifices for the furtherment of science and the good of the majority," she responded without any emotion in her tone.</p>
<p>He truly then realized that Isolena was no longer human. She was existing in her own closed off trauma, incapable and unwilling to allow any emotional tremors to cloud her determination. The woman was psychotic, dangerous, evil. This was how she was coping: by not facing what had happened, and not allowing her mind to register that what she was about to do was murder. She would not let herself grieve.</p>
<p>Mr. Cray threw his surgical instrument to the floor, "No! I won't help you kill your own son!"</p>
<p>Isolena curtly nodded and turned to the remaining two scientists. They shook their heads, backing away.</p>
<p>She said nothing, turning to the supine, unconscious figure laying on the metal table. Quickly, she placed a sheet over him, with a hole cut over where his heart was.</p>
<p>"Very well. You three may leave or watch if you wish. But remember, if any of you reveal what's happening here tonight, none of you will live past next week."</p>
<p>She was just about to cut into the body, when Mr. Cray grabbed her arm. "No! You can't! I won't let you!"</p>
<p>Narrowing her eyes, she wrenched his hand off her wrist and stabbed him in the chest with the surgical knife. He teetered, hand on his flesh, shocked at her. The other two scientists rushed to his aid, gasping, unable to utter anything. Afraid for their lives, they dragged a yelling, protesting Mr. Cray out.</p>
<p>Isolena huffed and narrowed her eyes. Annoyed, she dropped the bloody knife in a surgical receptacle and tapped a button on a console behind her. The entry door to the laboratory sealed shut, closing off anyone who attempted to enter—even her three colleagues. No one was going to interrupt her task. Performing the surgery and transplants would take longer than she'd calculated, as she had to undergo everything on her own now. But this was most likely for the best. Her colleagues had just proven that they couldn't be trusted with this only attempt she had to salvage everything.</p>
<p>Returning to the surgery table, inspecting a new sterile instrument, Isolena let out one worn sigh and began cutting.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>She was just about there! Just one more corner and—what! No vent. Rouge stopped. She'd miscalculated. She'd assumed this lab would have air vents located in the same places as the previous one, but it obviously didn't. That meant she'd wasted three hours cracking codes, saving passwords, and slowly progressing through pipes and tunnels!</p>
<p>Their air vents were located on the walls and floors, then. That meant there was no slot or opening anywhere up and around in the ceiling above this laboratory for her to access. Rouge considered which path to reroute her break-in through. If she backtracked enough, she could take another route and eventually make it to one of the wall or floor vents. However, that meant another one to two hours, and dirtying her fingers more.</p>
<p>Frustrated, she exhaled very faintly. This was so tiresome and it was so filthy up here! Her white gloves and exquisite boots were smeared with soot that would take special cleaning to get out! Irritated, she began to backtrack.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>Five in the morning. Everything was complete. Vital signs were stable. The specimen was breathing normally, deeply, laying in clear view atop a smaller metal bed. There was no need for the capsule any longer in which it had lain for nearly a decade. Once it awoke, she'd be able to finalize with certainty that it could survive independent of any machine assistance.</p>
<p>She'd inserted all the remaining chaos powder into the specimen, after she'd fastened the heart to the body. So far, there was yet to be any sign of incompatibility, and it had been over three hours. The incredible thing she hadn't expected was to see the heart not only absorb the golden powder, but begin to pump it with the blood that it created. When the chest of such a small creature had still been open before her, she'd paused briefly in awe at the sparkling gold that spread through every part of its body. The sight had been remarkably lovely: deep red blood sparkling full of golden powder. Almost, she'd lamented having to sew the specimen up.</p>
<p>She wouldn't awaken the specimen yet, so she turned to clean up the residue of the surgery. Fluids and blood dribbled off the larger metal surgical table. Disdain clouded her eyes as she took in the sight of the human body that had been her son's. Nothing but a corpse now, a filthy, useless, paling piece of flesh.</p>
<p>She further squeezed her heart shut and moved about the table, covering the body, then pushing the table into a refrigerator in the wall. With a smooth click, she shut the door and locked it. Then, with near mindless precision, she cleaned up every speck of evidence of what she'd just finished, spraying, sterilizing, drying everything. Lastly, she removed her scrubs, disintegrating them. There was no need to be quite as careful with sanitation as before. The specimen wouldn't fall ill to common bacteria and viruses she and the others might be carrying. The chaos powder wouldn't let such things happen.</p>
<p>At that second, her phone rumbled. She picked up in a dangerous undertone, "What do you want this time, you quack?"</p>
<p>"Stop looking in the mirror, will you?" Chuckled Eggman.</p>
<p>No response.</p>
<p>He cleared his throat, "Report."</p>
<p>"The specimen will be awake in a few hours."</p>
<p>"You stabilized it?"</p>
<p>"Of course, I did," she half snapped, offended that he'd subtly question her competence.</p>
<p>Eggman sounded impressed, "You are an incredible woman! I could use someone like you working for me. Wait, you already are!"</p>
<p>Isolena still had some form of limit to her dark actions, "Don't be so sure. Call back later if you want a proper update." A second time, she hung up on such a man that had tried, and almost succeeded more than once, in killing millions, in devastating entire cities. He'd broke the planet apart before, blown up half the moon. Perhaps she ought to deal with him with more tact, but Isolena felt such repulsion of that man that she had no inhibitor to hold back her rudeness when he called.</p>
<p>Fatigue and a headache forced Isolena to pause. Right. She needed water and something to eat. Taking a few minutes to refuel her body would be fine. She glanced back at the little strapped form laying on the metal table and hurried out to replenish herself.</p>
<p>Mere minutes after, she returned, satisfied, and approached the specimen to extract a blood sample. There was no need for restraints. She unlocked them. In this manner, she worked diligently for two more hours. After she unlocked the main entry door, her three colleagues returned, silent, apprehensive, too afraid to broach the inhumane thing she'd done.</p>
<p>Isolena knew what they were thinking. She'd murdered her own son.</p>
<p>Let them think what they wanted! She'd gone too far years ago. This was just the latest test she'd passed to prove her loyalty to Project Miracle. She didn't need nor seek their respect or admiration. Only their obedience. As for her son, well, she'd grown distanced from him over the years. Some form of affection—perhaps love—had persisted deep somewhere in her, but it was gone now. Every sliver of it. Destroyed. He was no more, so her love had no point in continuing. Like with her grief over her husband's death, Isolena placed all her feelings for Dylan in that same place and hammered it up. No use to let herself realize in her soul that anything had changed.</p>
<p>In silence, the four of them carried on tests for some time. In that time, Isolena wrote the rather tardy report for GUN that her husband had been tasked with, sprinkling it with niceties, lying, providing half truths, outright leaving large swaths of information out. If GUN knew what she'd done, they'd not only shut the project down, but they'd lock her up. But, as Eggman had guaranteed, he'd ensure they didn't know. She wasn't even the slightest bit curious to know how he could do such a thing. It was Eggman, after all.</p>
<p>Therefore, she only reported what she felt was necessary and let her employer know that they'd have results in a matter of days—or less—and would be commencing clinical trials of the medicine in mere hours.</p>
<p>With that dull task accomplished, it was now time for the next critical test. They'd saved the specimen and proven it could survive outside the sterile chamber. But in order to be sure the specimen would be healthy, they had to find out of it could sustain itself independent of machine assistance.</p>
<p>Isolena injected a clear fluid into the arm of the specimen. Mr. Cray approached and observed in silence. Next, she released the specimen from the tubes and drips it had currently been attached to. They four observed the vitals for a minute. Nothing changed. Satisfied, Isolena stuck one more vial of fluid into the same arm and then they waited.</p>
<p>"It may take a few minutes," Mr. Cray nervously noted.</p>
<p>They all knew that, but no one made any further comment. Isolena checked the specimen's pulse. It was steady. She turned her back to the little creature, initializing a lengthy, slow review of the creature's blood. This would take more than a day to complete.</p>
<p>There was a slight groan, after some minutes had elapsed. Some slight shifting behind her. One of her colleagues stepped up to check the specimen, so she continued with her current task. They knew what to do, competent as they were. Yet, the next minute, she heard a small, rather tenor voice she'd never expected to hear rise from behind her.</p>
<p>"M—Mom?"</p>
<p>Isolena whipped around, hands grasping the edge of the kiosk behind her. Face screwed into a snarl of shock and repulsion, she eyed the hedgehog laying on the table. He, likewise, had his brown eyes on her, somewhat bleary, blinking.</p>
<p>Mr. Cray was checking the creature's heart again and nodded to her.</p>
<p>"What is going on?" Isolena seethed. "The specimen isn't supposed to have any coherency or competence!"</p>
<p>"Maybe it's because of the source of his bra—"</p>
<p>She cut her colleague off, "That's absurd!"</p>
<p>Then, their specimen wearily put a hand to his eyes in some kind of pain, attempting to turn onto his side to steady himself.</p>
<p>He inhaled laboriously, trying to lift his head right to her. This time, his vision was crystal clear, his eyes bright with familiarity at her, and he spoke again, "Mom, what's going on? Where am I?"</p>
<p>Isolena clenched her teeth together as her heart threatened to burst from her chest. Horror of what she'd done, horror of what this creature was filled her mouth with bile. No. This was their specimen. Nothing else. It could never be anything else.</p>
<p>But those pleading eyes! Not the same color as her son's eyes, but the same expressiveness. No! This wasn't her son! This was the specimen, a freak with a mixture of human and hedgehog blood, filled with chaos powder. It didn't matter what memories or recollections he possessed. Her son was dead. This little growth was just their tool, the vessel that contained their precious medicine.</p>
<p>A hardness instilled back in Isolena's eyes. She faced Mr. Cray, "Take care of this. I have to step out for a moment."</p>
<p>As she turned away, the specimen tried to sit completely up, calling out to her in growing confusion, "Mom? Please—Mom! What's going on? Where am I?"</p>
<p>Isolena slapped the door panel. A bit too hastily, she escaped.</p>
<p>That she was gone, that this place was so foreign and intimidating, and that he felt so weak and strange, even queasy, Dylan exhaled, bringing his arms to his chest, laying down on his side. It was ice-cold and painfully hard. What was he laying on? Everything was silver, gray, white. There were machines, so many massive monitors with things flashing and moving he couldn't recognize. The smell in the air was sterile, slightly of chemicals and even slightly of something metallic like blood.</p>
<p>Why did she ignore him? Why did she leave like that? He just—he couldn't remember what had happened. Why did he feel so cold yet hot; so feeble and small and weak? Every movement taxed him, but he—he had to find out what was going on!</p>
<p>Again, Dylan struggled to sit up. There was someone behind him—who? He tried to turn, only managing to catch a glimpse of a white coat and hands. But something else then caught his eye. Him? Mint green?</p>
<p>Afraid, Dylan groaned until he'd overcome the mighty task of, at last, lifting himself up. Now he could see that he was sitting atop a metal table of some sort. He was in a large, square-shaped laboratory. Two people—a man and a woman—were hovering at the other side of the room tapping computer screens. But there was—someone else?</p>
<p>Dylan suddenly looked to his left. A man in another lab coat was standing right beside him, hastily tapping on a tablet. He was clean-shaven, tan, middle-aged. Nothing peculiar about him. Sensing eyes on him, he looked at Dylan and managed some sort of sad smile.</p>
<p>"Do you feel okay?" He asked, not unkindly.</p>
<p>Dylan was bewildered. His heart was starting to beat pretty fast, as he grew more and more confused.</p>
<p>"My mom—" The sound of the voice that came from him was not his own. It was slightly higher pitch than he remembered, scratchy as if it hadn't been used in a very long time. His throat was terribly dry and it burned.</p>
<p>He must have made some gesture about it, as the man handed him a small glass of water.</p>
<p>Dylan was in the process of accepting it, when he saw his hands: furry, that same mint green. The glass dropped and broke on the metal floor. Mesmerized, confused, horror rising, Dylan slowly turned his hands over. Then he took note of the rest of him.</p>
<p>This was not his body. He was a human. Not this—this—a hedgehog? And there was a large bandage stuck to his chest?</p>
<p>He felt himself and his heart raced faster and faster.</p>
<p>The scientist was trying to talk to him, but he couldn't comprehend what the words were. The more he ran his hands over himself, the more upset he became. Then, Dylan gasped in pain, pressing a hand over his chest. Leaning forward, he groaned, breathing rapidly increasing, panting.</p>
<p>The other two scientists rushed over to the metal table. They were exclaiming something, and Dylan could hear a chime going off. Then one of them moved—or was it two? He couldn't tell. His heart beat pounded in his ears. Horrible pain squeezed in his chest. All he could do was lay half curled up on the cold table with his hands pressed on his chest.</p>
<p>One of them tried to roll him onto his back and move his arms. Dylan struggled against it. He didn't know why, he just did. The more they tried to wrench his arms to his sides, the more he resisted.</p>
<p>Then, someone else was there, grabbing him. Dylan immediately fell limp at the voice. Isolena met his eyes with pure anger that frightened him, despite the throbbing in his entire body.</p>
<p>"Fasten him," she commanded and moved around the table, out of his line of vision.</p>
<p>Dylan opened his mouth and froze. Cold metal clamped over his wrists and ankles. She returned to his right, a needle in hand, avoiding his eyes as she stabbed him in the chest with it and injected something into him.</p>
<p>"Mom—" He struggled from the pain of the needle.</p>
<p>She whisked herself away to some place in the laboratory, then returned with a device that she strapped to his wrist. A monitor of sorts?</p>
<p>"Looks like he's calming down," she noted disinterestedly.</p>
<p>The pain was seeping way, Dylan could feel. His breathing slowly softened.</p>
<p>He begged, "Let me up, please." Voice forlorn, half whispering, as tears sprung up around his eyes, "M—Mom, please. Please—what's happened to me? I—I hurt everywhere. Why—why am I a hedgehog? Please—please-"</p>
<p>The cracking and gasping of his tone tore at her and she exhaled in great anger. Turning to face him directly, she scowled, "You're a hedgehog, because you're our specimen. We grew you in a lab for a decade. You are the property of GUN."</p>
<p>A pause, then Dylan couldn't control a stream of tears as he trembled, "No—no—I'm your son. Mom, why? I don't understand!"</p>
<p>She cut him off, cold, seething, unsympathetic, "My son is dead. You are nothing but a lab specimen to be used for the greater good of others. Accept it." And with that, she ripped herself away from the side of the table and once more left the laboratory.</p>
<p>The shock rattled Dylan's small frame, but whatever she'd shot him up with prevented his mind and body from raging with how he was feeling. Dylan tried to blink the tears away, but they just kept pouring. Laying on his back, he couldn't move; he couldn't see much of anything. There was just white ceiling of nothing. He cried and shut his eyes tight. How weary he felt! Was it the injection or was it this strange body? He couldn't scream or writhe. His lungs didn't have the capacity and he was strapped to the table.</p>
<p>So he lay quietly, heart breaking, trying to comprehend what had happened.</p>
<p>That man from before—what was his name?—he was yet standing by the table. As Dylan lay trembling with cold, the man leaned over with a tissue and dried his eyes.</p>
<p>"Look, kid, we weren't expecting this to happen. I'm sorry. This is all I can do for you right now."</p>
<p>"No—no—not more—" Dylan felt a sting in his arm. The man was forcing something else into him! He couldn't swallow. There was still no moisture in his throat. But he—he felt so tired. With no ability to resist, Dylan drifted off from the sedative into unconsciousness.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>Not sure what she was seeing, Rouge nevertheless felt like she'd committed a sin by just observing. She'd missed something critical, for, by the time she'd finally made it to an air vent at the side of the lab, she could only see a pale green hedgehog asleep on a table. The scientists were walking about, working on tablets and computers.</p>
<p>That hedgehog, what was it? She recalled the numerous tests Director Marshall had performed on some kind of thing in a cryostasis growth chamber. Was this it?</p>
<p>She breathed to herself, "Does that mean I missed whatever these scientists were going to do?"</p>
<p>A churning sprung up and died away in her gut. Everything seemed fine, but she wasn't convinced. Yet, there was nothing to see at the moment, so—</p>
<p>The doors opened. That woman Ms. Marshall entered. Something struck Rouge when she observed the woman now. She was different, far colder than before. Fascinated, Rouge watched her intently.</p>
<p>"Did you stabilize the specimen?" Isolena questioned one of her colleagues, a Mr. Cray, if Rouge recalled right.</p>
<p>"Yes," Mr. Cray's voice was sad. "How could you?" He accused his superior with grit teeth. "He—he's your son."</p>
<p>Isolena snapped viciously, "Don't say that ever again! That—that creature is not my son! My son is dead!"</p>
<p>"Isol—"</p>
<p>"Quiet!"</p>
<p>Dead silence.</p>
<p>Then she sighed, "All of the simpler vitals and tests show no problems. The comprehensive one will take some time. But this is good enough. Tomorrow, we'll move to our first clinical trial."</p>
<p>"So quickly?"</p>
<p>"Please," she droned. "Stop making this so difficult. Remember that we all succeed or die together. Just do what you have to do."</p>
<p>Realizing she was holding her breath, Rouge quietly exhaled. Unadulterated confusion and a sense of rising dread tingled through her spine. Something horrible had happened—but just what? Why did that human refer to a hedgehog as Ms. Marshall's child? It could logically be construed that way, because they'd grown the creature, so in a way, it was like their child. That didn't feel like the reason to her, though.</p>
<p>She couldn't see the top of the table from this low position. Just the tips of the pale green spines from that hedgehog. The scientists commenced drawing more blood from it and Rouge had to hold herself in check, again. The crimson liquid sparkled, full of millions of flakes of gold glitter. It was chaos powder! It—it had come from the hedgehog's body!</p>
<p>Ms. Marshall spoke, "We have an approved patient to test this on tomorrow. They signed the proper wavers and liabilities."</p>
<p>Her colleague Mr. Cray only nodded. His face was pinched, terse. Rouge understood his emotional state, as hers was similar.</p>
<p>Rouge slid her hand to the wall, "I best get back, but I'll make a proper scan of the facility as I go."</p>
<p>She silently stepped away and began to slowly walk through the vents. As she went, she held up a tiny, flat disk that swept turquoise bars of light just before and about her. The device was blueprinting and outlining her path so, if need be, she and the others could crawl back through with no trouble of direction.</p>
<p>In addition, she dropped a microphone near the vent's mouth and three robotic spiders that would crawl about the lab and larger building, also sending her and Tails insights of their findings and most importantly, the structure of the corridors.</p>
<p>While it took her hours to break in, Rouge required only minutes to slink out and run back to the hotel.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Burning</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>He sighed and rubbed his hands over his eyes. After all this—there was no words—just all of this, every minute of work ran against his nature. How'd things become so morbid, so unthinkable? As a scientist, he was supposed to create useful things, discover breakthroughs, enhance life for all! Hadn't that been the purpose of Project Miracle? Now, it had gone awry. The others kept silently to their work and he wondered if they felt the same way he did: that they were all a joke. Every second they labored now was a lie. No amount of people they might be able to save from diseases now could justify the innocent life they'd all but destroyed.</p>
<p>In the least, a project meant to save life by devastating one was begging for retribution upon it.</p>
<p>Mr. Cray dropped his tablet on the kiosk top and placed a fist to his forehead, eyes squeezed shut. He jerked, from the pitiful sound of a small voice directly to his right.</p>
<p>Dreading any interaction, he nevertheless was drawn to the little trembling hedgehog and stepped to the side of the metal table.</p>
<p>The creature was so vulnerable and pathetic. His eyes drooped and Mr. Cray could feel the sorrow emanating from the frame.</p>
<p>He spoke, slow, with difficulty, begging, "Please—Berry—"</p>
<p>"What?" Mr. Cray leaned over to hear better.</p>
<p>There was a slight sob and again, "My chao, Berry. No one's there for him. Please, help him."</p>
<p>The kid had a chao? Isolena had never mentioned it before, but that didn't surprise him. That woman hadn't ever been one to share anything sweet or personal about her family.</p>
<p>He blinked at the boy and noticed the tightening of the pale green hands into fists. There was nothing Dylan could do, restrained there as he was. It wasn't that Mr. Cray wouldn't go see into that matter; he was just so fascinated, despite his own self-repulsion, to watch how the brain had fused so perfectly, so completely with that body. They had never meant for their specimen to be able to do anything on its own: think, feel, move, reason. And, a human brain in a body that was incompatible with it? Amazing.</p>
<p>Dylan pleaded again, snapping Mr. Cray out of his scientific reverie.</p>
<p>Immediately the scientist reached out and took hold of the cold hand, "Don't worry, Dylan. I'll go get your chao."</p>
<p>"No!" Dylan could turn his head at least, an action he did so swiftly, that he shut his eyes in some kind of new pain. Then he fastened his brown eyes right on Mr. Cray, "Please, don't—don't bring him here. Find a new home for him. He—he wouldn't like it here and—" a rasp of another sob, but Dylan suppressed it. "He wouldn't know me."</p>
<p>Mr. Cray wrenched his hand away as if seared. His heart bled and he immediately hurried out of the laboratory to do everything that child had requested.</p>
<p>"How it is, that—everything that's happened, he—that chao is what's on his mind? Not himself?"</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>They had to get that chaos emerald and that hedgehog from the lab, then find the other emeralds. As Shadow already had one, and the lab certainly had another, that meant five would remain. This point was agreed to, after Rouge filled the team in on what she'd seen and that she'd heard the call Isolena had answered with Eggman. That alone troubled everyone so much, that it was universally agreed upon, even with no way to fix the chaos emeralds, that their current turbulent nature couldn't land in GUN hands.</p>
<p>Then, she called Knuckles, "How's the master emerald?"</p>
<p>"Still uptight. I can touch it, but not for long. It gets really hot and starts to spin pretty quickly. So, I've been keeping a healthy distance."</p>
<p>"Is Angel Island at least floating okay, Knuckles?" Sonic broke in.</p>
<p>The Echidna was broadcasted to everyone via a large flat screen TV in her and Shadow's hotel lounge. Rouge had returned expressly from Project Miracle and for a half hour, they'd been discussing what to do.</p>
<p>Knuckles crossed his arms, "Yes. It's been fine."</p>
<p>"I think it's best for you to stay there," Sonic continued. "I think things are about to get a bit chaotic here, and if something goes wrong, it's safest that you're there to handle the master emerald."</p>
<p>Knuckles only nodded, "Right. I'm gonna go now. Keep me informed!"</p>
<p>The feed ended. A silence took over the room for a few seconds.</p>
<p>It was Tails who innocently asked, "Can't we just blast our way in there? Or Shadow can use chaos control to get that hedgehog you mentioned and the chaos emerald out?"</p>
<p>Sonic and Amy eyed Shadow in expectation. Rouge pursed her lips. Her friend sat with his arms crossed and made no remark.</p>
<p>"Shadow? Something going on?" Sonic asked.</p>
<p>"Chaos control may not be an option," he only replied.</p>
<p>As that made absolutely no sense, and was frustrating with no explanation, Sonic raised his brow, "What? What gives, Shadow? If you don't use chaos control, and we have to brute-force our way in, some of us might get hurt and it'll be a hassle."</p>
<p>"Then it will be a hassle," he crossed his arms.</p>
<p>Something beeped. All eyes turned to Rouge. "Oh? This is what it takes to get everyone to look at me?" She smirked, pressing a button. Something else popped up on the large TV: a set of what looked like an outline of a building's interior.</p>
<p>"Is this the laboratory for Project Miracle?" Tails caught on before the others.</p>
<p>She nodded, "Yes, little fox boy. You're pretty smart! Looks like my little helpers have gathered enough information to piece this together for us. That didn't take as long as I thought! I was starting to get bored of all this planning and chatter. Look, everyone," she rose and approached the TV. "This is the entry to the building. I came through these air vents, but we won't—and can't—do that all together. There's not enough space. I have some of the access codes, but not all. There's no point to discuss any further what we're gonna do. It's clear! We just have to fight our way in and hold off reinforcements while Tails and I crack the remaining entry codes into the lab. When we get in there, we'll get the chaos emerald and snatch that cute, little hedgehog and make our escape! The only part I haven't considered is where will we go? Shadow and I will be instant traitors on GUN's seek and capture list. Well, all of you will, too, but not as hot as we will be. We'll need to regroup at a very remote place, where we can figure out the next step."</p>
<p>"Which is to get the remaining chaos emeralds," Shadow softly interjected.</p>
<p>"Yes—whatever's happening with those pretty jewels, we should gather them all and go to Angel Island, after we regroup. I can't think of any other way. We don't know if doing that will do any good, but it's worth a shot."</p>
<p>"I like it!" Sonic jumped up. "All this sitting is making my legs stiff!"</p>
<p>Amy snuck a look at Shadow to catch his reaction, which made her almost smirk: rolling of his eyes and a huff. Sonic was such a go-getter, but didn't always think through all the details. The dark hedgehog wasn't impressed.</p>
<p>But something else was going on with Shadow. He'd been off since he'd visited her the previous day. For this meeting, he'd also insisted she come. This time, no one had questioned why little ol' her had showed up. It made Amy self-conscious but proud at the same time that, arguably, the strongest member among them had included her, and of his own decision.</p>
<p>She realized the word she was looking for: validated. Her heart warmed and she openly smiled toward the hedgehog.</p>
<p>He glanced over and paused, quickly reverting his eyes away.</p>
<p>Sonic broke into the silence again, "When are we going to do this daring bust? I'm sort of impatient!"</p>
<p>Rouge slowly sat back down on the other side of Shadow, "At one in the morning. GUN never reduces the guard count on duty, but most of the scientists and non-essential personnel have gone home by then until the morning shift. None of Project Miracle's scientists will be present."</p>
<p>Shadow nodded in approval.</p>
<p>Then Rouge added, "Give it three days. My little metal friends still have some data to gather. It would be easier if they were able to get us the rest of the access codes."</p>
<p>"Three days?" Tails looked a bit upset.</p>
<p>"Cool it, junior," Rouge passed him a friendly smile. "You guys just run around and go to the beach or something. Leave it to us professionals to work this through. Besides, why would you bust your butts in there when you could get off much easier with the access codes?"</p>
<p>Point taken.</p>
<p>Amy swallowed, "Sonic, you can still stay at my place, if you'd like."</p>
<p>He immediately sat down, looking a bit upset, but was wisely silent.</p>
<p>Amy softly sighed and Shadow felt an odd urge to strangle the blue hedgehog. But he only remarked, tone of iron, "That faker and the fox are staying here. I will stay with Amy. It's proper I do so to ensure she's recovering well, since I inflicted her wound."</p>
<p>The entire room was stunned speechless. Sonic's eyes popped. Tails' mouth hung open. Amy turned her head to the arm of the chair in utter pink-cheeked embarrassment.</p>
<p>Rouge's raised brow lowered as a little smile of knowing pressed on her lips, "Shadow, I had no idea you were such a Casanova!"</p>
<p>To wit, Shadow grit his teeth a second, but said nothing. His glare was enough to keep the more intimidated people silent.</p>
<p>But not Sonic, "You can't stay at Amy's apartment! That's the most stupid thing I've heard in a while!"</p>
<p>"That's fine. You go with her to keep an eye on her head and I'll stay here, then," came the silk response.</p>
<p>Sonic looked from Amy to Shadow, then back to Amy. He seemed to disdain the idea, how he clenched his fists and swallowed. Staying there—even with an Amy that had a concussion—would be a constant nag of calling for him, trying to touch him, pushing herself into his lap. But the longer he stood in the room with everyone's breath baited, the more he felt like a jerk. Amy was even starting to look rejected.</p>
<p>Shadow stood up, "This is ridiculous. Sonic, I'll stay with Amy. Now, I need to go."</p>
<p>"Where are you going?" Sonic asked.</p>
<p>No response.</p>
<p>"Hey—can I come along?"</p>
<p>At the door, Shadow scowled back at the blue hedgehog, "I wish to be alone."</p>
<p>He was gone.</p>
<p>What should have troubled Amy the most was how Sonic tried so desperately to avoid staying with her even for just a few days. He also hadn't commented on her change of attire. But, honestly, those were only the less-important things on her mind. She couldn't stop staring at the open door, where Shadow had just exited through. Absently, she stood and walked over to peer out. Of course, the brooder was nowhere around. A small weight dropped further in her stomach. Disappointment?</p>
<p>She stepped out, then Tails called, "Amy, are you going somewhere?"</p>
<p>"I—yes!" She thought quickly, "Do you want to come? I'm just going to go a few blocks down the street to get frozen yogurt."</p>
<p>"Oh, sure! Anyone else want any?"</p>
<p>Yogurt. Disgusting. Rouge shook her head.</p>
<p>Sonic waved though, "Extra dark chocolate rocky road with broken Oreo on top?"</p>
<p>The fox gave him a thumbs up, "You got it, pal!"</p>
<p>Rouge called after them, "Come back right away, Miles honey! You need to help me with that smart brain of yours!"</p>
<p>Tails nearly chuckled from the compliment, bashful, then he jogged to catch up to Amy. The duo held hands and progressed to skip down the corridor to the elevator, talking about everything and nothing. They giggled and swung their connected arm back and forth all the way out and then more so down the public sidewalk.</p>
<p>It marveled Shadow how carefree she and the fox could be during such a potentially critical time. But that was one of her mightiest charms: her ability to funnel emotions in many little boxes so she could keep up a brave, positive front. Some might have thought it overdone and sickening. At first, he'd thought so, too. Yet, her persistent nature had shown that Amy Rose had a sincerity few people possessed so purely. That aided in her incredible ability to be hopeful, positive, and enthusiastic.</p>
<p>Shadow sat on the edge of a multi-story corporate building rooftop and his eye followed her and Tails as they progressed down the sidewalk, then into the yogurt store. He longed to go in and see what all the fuss was over the sugary, fat-ridden, frozen edible thing they liked so much. He'd never had it before. Eating was just another thing Shadow had to do just now and then to maintain his strength. As it was a necessity, he consumed only the food that was guaranteed to physically benefit him the most.</p>
<p>Yet, he dropped, skidded down the side of the building, sprang off, and jogged down the few blocks to the store. Maybe he should just be a bit more honest about all of this. If things didn't end up well, he may not get to confess anything.</p>
<p>Confess? What insanity had gotten into him?</p>
<p>Shadow leaned against the building, grimacing at himself. Then—Amy and Tails exited, hands still enjoined. Tails was holding a tray of little yogurt cups. They were in the middle of some sort of joke, laughing, then they saw Shadow and stopped.</p>
<p>"Shadow?" Amy looked around, then at him. "What are you—"</p>
<p>"Are you going back to the hotel?"</p>
<p>"Uh—yes?"</p>
<p>"No," he mumbled.</p>
<p>Tails perilously eyed her, and she him, then Amy tugged on his arm so the duo resumed. "Yes, I'm going back to the hotel," she defiantly responded, passing Shadow.</p>
<p>He grabbed her arm just enough that they both had to stop again.</p>
<p>"Take your unhealthy snack and come with me. Tails can go back himself."</p>
<p>"What? Yogurt isn't that unhealthy! It has less fat and sugar than ice cream! And it has probiotics!"</p>
<p>"Tails," Shadow trailed, glaring at the child.</p>
<p>The poor fox's namesakes drooped and he hesitated. He needed to get back, anyway, and Amy didn't have any specific reason or need to be there just then.</p>
<p>Swallowing, he released her hand, "Sorry, Amy. Have fun—if that's possible—with Shadow! It's probably better, too, because I need to work on some highly complicated stuff with Rouge!" Quickly, he handed Amy her little yogurt and ran up the sidewalk with everything else.</p>
<p>"Tails!" Amy yelled. With a half screech and a huff, she turned to shadow, "What are you doing?"</p>
<p>"Nothing," he slid in to the left of her, where Tails had just been, and took her hand in his.</p>
<p>Amy paled, "Are you going insane?"</p>
<p>"I'd like to try that yogurt of yours."</p>
<p>More stupefied, Amy clutched her little container tighter, almost defensively. She stood there as people passed, examining Shadow closely. Eyes narrowing, she felt her temper flare, and then she recalled something was off about Shadow. Maybe this ridiculous moment could be used for her purposes.</p>
<p>Even mischievous, she snapped, "I'm not sharing. Go get your own."</p>
<p>He abruptly dropped his hand from hers and turned away, "Never mind."</p>
<p>This was so annoying! If this dark-toned loner was going to act this way, Amy intended to have some fun with it! She snatched his hand and whipped him back, to Shadow's silent shock, and stuck the spoon with yogurt in his mouth.</p>
<p>After a couple frozen seconds, Shadow calmly removed the empty spoon and stuck it back atop her treat. No words. No change of expression.</p>
<p>But Amy had something to say, "Shadow, tell me what's going on with you, or I'm going to take you with me to Cream's house and you know how she always loves to have you over for tea!"</p>
<p>Such a threat didn't work with Shadow. The two ended up walking aimlessly block after block. Though she probed over and over, he didn't succumb to telling her anything; and, as they turned hither and thither, he let her chatter to keep her distracted, so as to avoid the rabbit's house.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>Only because a chao slowly starving to death in her house was the reason she gave, did Isolena actually tell Mr. Cray her access code. Get rid of it. She didn't care what he did with it. The continued apathy toward anything that was her son's astonished him. Maybe soon though, her soulless words would bounce off of him. If he ever got used to how much she'd spiraled into evil, that was.</p>
<p>Mr. Cray had gone to the house and found the little chao hungry and terrified, sitting on Dylan's bed. He'd had to lure the little creature over to him with snacks and soft words. It had taken some time, but the innocent baby had ended up dropping into his hands. Now, as he drove to someplace, with the chao in a large metal cage in the backseat, Mr. Cray wondered what he actually would do with it.</p>
<p>He couldn't keep it and he didn't trust animal shelters. Dylan's heart-breaking words played through his mind. It was true that placing a sweet little creature in a laboratory would have been cruel.</p>
<p>Wait, was he talking about the chao just then or Dylan?</p>
<p>Groaning, he kept driving, soon finding himself along a long stretch of freeway that headed toward the beach. How'd he come here? He hadn't been clearly thinking of any place in particular, but—here? Oh, it didn't matter! This or that place, how was he going to take care of this chao?</p>
<p>There were only a few free spots in the vast parking lot before the beach. He claimed one and stepped out of his car to stretch. The beach was quite packed with sounds of laughter and play. Mr. Cray longed to remember what it felt like to be that light inside. Sadly, he leaned in and plucked Berry up out of the cage. The little creature was still a little apprehensive, but it was quiet, its eyes reaching out over the sand.</p>
<p>That's where he went, taking his shoes off and leaving them in his car, walking down to the soft sand to take a stroll—or something. There were people more than he could count, all enjoying the sun and the water and each other. Would Dylan ever have any of that again?</p>
<p>His throat hitched and he stopped, watching the froth of the waves rise and fall. Then, there was a happy laugh somewhere to the left and he looked over. A bit up the beach where a few less people were sunbathing, a pink hedgehog and a black hedgehog were walking together.</p>
<p>The way the girl looked drew Mr. Cray in. He turned and walked toward them both. She was pointing out at the water, smiling broadly. Her companion seemed stoic. He didn't speak and his expression of passivity rarely altered. Mr. Cray kept approaching. Almost upon them, the male felt him and turned, his red eyes narrowing a little.</p>
<p>"I'm sorry to intrude," Mr. Cray stopped a few steps from two.</p>
<p>The girl inquisitively blinked up at him.</p>
<p>"I'm sorry, I have a strange request to make. I need someone to take this chao for me—give it a new home. I can't take care of it. My job is such that—well, I don't have time for it and I can't give it the love and care it needs. Please, do this for me—and someone else. This chao's name is Berry. He was—is very special to a friend I know."</p>
<p>"Huh?" Amy was stunned. The little gooey creature was thrust into her hands before she could rebuff, and the man turned and hurried away. It blinked with huge eyes up at her and she stared down at it. "Hey!"</p>
<p>But the man was gone. Perplexed, she turned to Shadow.</p>
<p>He raised a brow at her and then his eyes fell to the chao. "Going to keep that thing?"</p>
<p>Now that Amy had some seconds to think about it, and looking closely at the bubbling, cooing, cuddly chao, she started to smile. The baby touched her face and pushed upward in her hands, planting a little kiss on her chin. Enchanted, she beamed, "I think I will! If Cream can take care of two, I can handle one! But that guy, didn't he seem really upset about something?"</p>
<p>"His friend probably died," Shadow casually remarked.</p>
<p>"Oh, Shadow, what a horrible thing to say!"</p>
<p>"Why, should I sugar coat it?"</p>
<p>"No—but you don't know what happened!"</p>
<p>He shrugged, "It seems like a plausible scenario."</p>
<p>All Amy did was scowl at him, then turn back to the chao. Her tone took on a higher pitch, "Your name is Berry? Well, I'm Amy! I'll take care of you and love you, Berry! My cute Berry! And I know two other chao that will love to meet you!"</p>
<p>Shadow nearly curled his lip. How disgusting.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>The detailed blood workup results were back, finally. This scan took hours, unlike the summaries of the specimen's biology. There wasn't much she expected to be worried about. After all, they'd begun the clinical trial and it seemed to be doing well. It would last a week with one daily injection of the specimen's blood into the patient. At the end of the week, a review would be accumulated of the patient's condition to see if they had improved from the injections.</p>
<p>Initial results showed overall healthy blood from the specimen, hence why Isolena wasn't concerned about any abnormalities. Everyone had a little issue here and there.</p>
<p>She brought up the results on a tablet and sat down in the laboratory to start a slow review. Mr. Cray entered and picked up a copy to do likewise. She didn't ask him about Berry and he didn't mention the chao.</p>
<p>They were quiet for some time, as they poured over different areas of the results.</p>
<p>Mr. Cray glanced over at Dylan. At least Isolena had allowed them to unclamp him and move him into a cage of sorts with a mattress that he could lay on. The cage was six by six feet and the bars reached from the floor to the ceiling. There was one door they could open by entering an access code.</p>
<p>The hedgehog seemed to be sleeping, half curled up on the mattress. At least the boy had some peace, he hoped, while he was unconscious.</p>
<p>Back to his task, he continued on. But—what was that? Mr. Cray stopped slowly scrolling and gripped the device a little tighter. Glancing at Isolena, it seemed she hadn't noticed. He couldn't not speak up. She'd find out in just a few more minutes.</p>
<p>Breaking her concentration, he placed his tablet over hers, "You may want to look at this. Is it what I think it is?"</p>
<p>She was annoyed that he'd interrupted her, but her eyes swept to the tablet and she hastily read the text and looked at the results in question. Face paling, she venomously stared over at the slumbering creature. Pressing both tablets against Mr. Cray's chest, she stepped around him and opened a cabinet.</p>
<p>"Isolena—" Mr. Cray approached. "What are you doing?"</p>
<p>She said nothing. From the cabinet she pulled out gauze, cloth, two needles in wrappers, a liquid, medical gloves, and rubbing alcohol. She put the gloves on and mechanically went about filling both needles with the fluid. Then, glaring at Mr. Cray, who was persisting in his question, she pulled out a small surgical cutting knife and sterilized it.</p>
<p>"You can't do this to him, Isolena! It's not his fault!"</p>
<p>"Move!"</p>
<p>The other two scientists stopped to watch what was going on.</p>
<p>Mr. Cray was startled. Isolena took her supplies, tapped the keypad, and entered the cage. After, she shut the door and dropped to her knees next to the hedgehog.</p>
<p>Unsympathetically, she shook him to wake him up. Dylan had been sleeping rather deeply, due to overwhelming fatigue and emotional stress. With the shaking, though, he groaned and woke with a gasp. Disoriented, he pushed himself up to figure out what was going on now.</p>
<p>Isolena was there to his left, sitting near his feet. Seeing her, Dylan automatically recoiled in fear. She was his mother, but she didn't see him as any relation to her. There was nothing in her gaze but disgust and anger. It was more than enough to intimidate and hurt him all over again.</p>
<p>She suddenly reached out, grabbed his lower leg, and pulled him closer.</p>
<p>"What—what are you doing?" He gasped.</p>
<p>No words. She began to rub quite a large section of his lower leg with the alcohol, alarming Dylan further. When he tried to pull away from her, she wrenched him back. She put the cloth down and picked something up, something slender, sharp, shimmering.</p>
<p>Dylan whimpered and reached up to stop her, desperate.</p>
<p>Isolena shoved him completely back down on the mattress, her free hand crushing his chest over the bandage, "If you move, you'll regret it."</p>
<p>Ice. He felt new tears forming, half from terror about her holding a surgical knife, and half from a sweeping feeling of aching loneliness.</p>
<p>She added, "You better calm yourself down. If you get excited, you could have another heart attack."</p>
<p>What? A heart attack? Was that what had happened to him the first time when his chest felt like it was going to collapse? Why would he have a heart attack? He'd never had any heart problems before—</p>
<p>He gasped and cried out in pain. She'd begun to slice right into his leg! His body repulsed the pain and Dylan attempted to wrench forward and stop her. She shoved him down again and he feebly tried to prop himself up on his elbows. But he couldn't. He felt sick from what she was doing.</p>
<p>She didn't cut deep, just quickly, through several inches of his leg. The knife clattered to the metal floor, tipped with blood. Indifferently, Isolena watched the gold-ridden blood start dripping, then streaming out of the incision. Yet, she kept her hand clamped on his ankle, preventing Dylan from moving his leg away.</p>
<p>He tried so hard not to cry, not to panic, but Dylan sucked in air and gasped, the words hitching through tears, "Why would you—you know I have he—hemophilia!"</p>
<p>"Yes, it seems you still do," she disapprovingly responded.</p>
<p>So much blood. All over the mattress, soaking in, soaking down.</p>
<p>To herself, she added, "You weren't supposed to still have this problem, after all this. The chaos powder should have healed this!"</p>
<p>He was already feeling a second wave of nausea and weakness, collapsing on his back. Maybe he would die now. That would be such a relief.</p>
<p>Then, a new pang of horrible pain in his leg burned. She'd stuck him twice with something. He didn't want to think about it. Through it all, Dylan forced himself to be utterly quiet. Only tears pressed from his eyes. His mother cleaned the cut for quite some time, applying pressure, until the coagulant worked well enough that his bleeding slowed considerably.</p>
<p>Her touch was rough, revealing how angry she was at him. How was it his fault? What had he done-exist? She wrapped his leg in a thick layer of gauze and finally placed the appendage back on the mattress.</p>
<p>Dylan didn't move, didn't open his eyes.</p>
<p>She stood and spoke, "Mr. Cray, have this mattress exchanged. It's soaked with blood now."</p>
<p>There was a clattering of metal, then a click of a lock. Her steps faded. Then, Dylan slowly opened his eyes. Yes, she was gone. He felt both relieved and horribly sad. His mother had cut him. She'd already done unthinkable things to him, but her, there, abhorring him, treating him like that when he was awake!</p>
<p>He had no one. He was a lab rat and that reality didn't help subside the feeling he had to vomit. There was no place for him to hide his shame. Dylan turned onto his side, facing inward, hoping no one could see his face.</p>
<p>But, what was that sparkling golden stuff on the blood on the mattress?</p>
<p>Curious, Dylan laboriously, slowly sat up and leaned over to look at it. The sheer amount of blood he'd just lost made him feel dizzy, but there was something all over the place like golden glitter. Confused, he ran one of his fingers down the still-wet blood and it came back with a lot of the sparkles with the blood.</p>
<p>The female scientist noticed Dylan staring at it, answering, "I guess no one is going to tell you, so I will. I don't see why it's a secret. You're special, kid. Your human heart pumps two types of blood: your human blood, which seems to have retained the unfortunate state of hemophilia; and hedgehog blood. But, you also have chaos emerald powder. That's what that golden stuff is. Before you—uh—became our specimen, that body of yours was grown to fuse the two blood types and chaos powder together. That's how we made the medicine that will heal all sorts of diseases. That medicine is your blood. The most interesting side-effect though, when we added a little powder to your blood, is that your heart seemed to have absorbed it and now pumps it with your blood. A never-ending supply."</p>
<p>"What?" Dylan barely managed to ask.</p>
<p>She shrugged, "I have to go back to my work, but if you want to know more, ask Mr. Cray. It seems he's taken a fancy to you."</p>
<p>A chaos emerald? Dylan knew what those were. He'd seen them on TV and read about them both for school research and in magazines to pass the time. No one knew really where they came from; and especially no one knew who'd crafted them. Only that they were magnets for a sundry list of people, good and lesser so, and that whoever had all seven could control immense power.</p>
<p>He also remembered that hedgehog Sonic having harnessed their power more than once. It had been hard to capture him on film in his super form, but it had been done. Then—there was another hedgehog too, a darker one, who'd been able to use the power, too. Who was it? Did it even matter? It was such to have learned what a freak he was, that Dylan felt afraid for himself—of himself, then.</p>
<p>There was no point to think about it. He could only try to clear his mind and sleep.</p>
<p>It was some unknown time later that he slowly awoke again, to the sounds of ragged arguing. A male and female. He knew the voices. Something about strength, building up muscle. It was all a haze. A door slammed and then it was quiet. He thought no one was there, but then there were footsteps. Dylan woke a bit more to listen, feeling apprehensive.</p>
<p>He didn't dare roll over and see who it was. For some reason, he felt like he didn't deserve to do that. So he lay, pretending to be asleep, listening for quite some time.</p>
<p>The door to his cage opened. Someone came in. Dylan continued to lay still, but he grimaced when someone pressed their hands on his leg and started to unwind the gauze. To that, he couldn't fake it any longer and he opened his eyes to watch.</p>
<p>Isolena noticed his gaze and she ignored it. She dropped the string of bloody gauze and tissue on the ground and progressed to inject him with more coagulant then clean and wrap his leg with fresh dressings.</p>
<p>Why he spoke, Dylan couldn't understand. It was just another invitation for her wrath, "Where's Dad?"</p>
<p>At that, Isolena snapped her eyes up and pierced them so strongly at him, that Dylan regretted his question. She didn't speak. She just finished her task and left his cage.</p>
<p>Dylan then realized she was the only person present. What time was it? There was no point to ask. She wouldn't answer something so petty for anyone, especially a specimen like him.</p>
<p>His mother was examining another needle of some fluid. Dylan felt his spines bristle, a very strange feeling on his back that startled him. He was afraid. It was an automatic reaction. He was a hedgehog. Not a human anymore.</p>
<p>Isolena stepped over to a wall that had three metal square doors with handles like he'd seen in pictures of morgues. Before the doors, she'd placed another metal bed on legs, which rose up to her middle. She checked some things over there, and then returned to his cage. What was it now?</p>
<p>She came in and stepped over to him, thrusting her wrists under his arms, picking him up.</p>
<p>Dylan automatically resisted. His body was still weak and he hurt in various places, but her—her—she had no good intentions! Since he'd arrived, all this hell and pain had started because of her!</p>
<p>As he struggled, she clamped down harder on him, stepping out of the cage and over to the table. Not too kindly, she dropped him on the table, clasping his legs in another set of restraints. Then, slamming his hands to his sides, furiously frowning at his struggling, Dylan paused, and she used his fear to likewise strap his wrists down.</p>
<p>Exhaling, she stepped back and pressed a button. The bed inclined to near vertical. Dylan became further confused, but remained silent.</p>
<p>Isolena approached one of the metal doors in the wall and she opened it. Cold air spilled out. She began to pull something of considerable size out of the chamber.</p>
<p>"You asked about my husband earlier," she remarked monotonously. "To answer your question, he's dead."</p>
<p>A new feeling of grief shot through Dylan, "D—dead?"</p>
<p>His eyes focused on the slab she'd pulled out. A body was laying on it. Something about it was very familiar, but he could only see the head and shoulders from where he was placed. Isolena maneuvered it sideways so Dylan was able to see the entire side profile of the body, covered from the shoulders down with a white sheet.</p>
<p>His body tensed everywhere, his fur again standing up.</p>
<p>Isolena pressed another button and glass rose and slid over and around the body, encapsulating it, separating it from her and everything in the lab.</p>
<p>"Do not ever ask about my husband again," she coldly warned. "He died because of you. You are not my son. Don't ever address me familiarly again."</p>
<p>Something worse than hatred shown in her face at him. One more pressing of a button and fire crackled to life under the glass, surrounding the corpse.</p>
<p>"This is what's left of my son. Now, there will be nothing remaining," she glanced at the burning corpse. "You are nothing but a specimen."</p>
<p>Dylan couldn't see the body burning inside the glass after just seconds, as the smoke grew too thick, but he knew it was his body. His human body. The comprehension of it being there, of what she'd done—that she was torturing him to make a point—cut straight through him to his heart. It hurt more than he could understand. Not just emotionally, but then physically. He wasn't her son. He was dead to her. His father was dead! When? When?</p>
<p>Was she doing this to punish him—to put him in his place—because he'd dared ask about his father?</p>
<p>She'd never answer him about any of it. With the scene before him, Dylan pressed his eyes shut to try to flee from it, but he couldn't. There was, he'd realized, a small hope that he could have been placed back in his human body—whatever that meant. He hadn't even realized he'd been grasping onto such vain hope, until now. Until the last proof that he had actually been human hissed and dissolved into ashes.</p>
<p>He gasped and heaved from tears, his hands and body starting to tremble. That terrible pain in his chest was starting again! Was it a heart attack? Why did he have them? Strapped down, he couldn't escape, couldn't move, couldn't help himself. He would die if his mother wanted him dead. He would live if she preferred it. She owned him like a possession. He had been her son. Now he wasn't. He was nothing.</p>
<p>He started panting and sweating then heaving. Through the pain and tears, he couldn't tell what was going on anymore. He felt something like a prick, then something on his chest, but he didn't care. He tried to move, hopelessly.</p>
<p>Things started to slow and his ability to move became too hard to do any more. Dylan rolled his face to open his eyes upward and he saw his mother coolly observing him. Was that almost a grin she had? But he was too tired, and then he was unconscious.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Sand and Sunsets</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>That confounded phone again! Isolena was sick of it—sick and tired! She trembled with anger, eyes unblinking at it, until the ringtone stopped. The caller was Eggman. Wouldn't he take a hint? Sure, she'd told him to call back later, but she'd missed that call, and he'd been pestering her ever since.</p>
<p>Even if he cut off all his funds now, they didn't need him anymore! The clinical trial was going superbly! As long as it worked fine, they'd have bags of money coming in!</p>
<p>Standing at her desk, Isolena tried to calm her breathing. The berated, whipped eyes of that hedgehog! She hated that thing! That he had all her son's memories; that he knew her. It was a mockery!</p>
<p>Her heart was pounding. Isolena gulped a glass of water and stood still, eyes closed, until her body started calming down. It didn't matter what the specimen held of her son or who he thought he was. She knew. She had no family. Only this project. No pleading from that little freak would move her.</p>
<p>Resolved, she exited the lab to go to the hospital to check on their trial patient.</p>
<p>+++</p>
<p>The rest of the information came in and Rouge copied it to a drive and handed the tiny disk to Tails. "Okay, Miles honey, tomorrow you get to prove if you have what it takes to be a GUN agent."</p>
<p>Her confident smile and wink brought a blush to the child's cheeks. He hesitated, looked away while grasping the invaluable disk from her.</p>
<p>"Well, I don't want to be a spy," he mumbled, sweetly shy. "I like saving the world with Sonic."</p>
<p>How adorable! She didn't say it, though was amused that the child considered their current task to be different than that. Instead, she teased, "Did you get a girl yet, sweety?"</p>
<p>Tails brought his hands to his chest, "Wh—what?"</p>
<p>She giggled in a low way, walking past him to her side of the shared couch, "Oh, I forgot. You have one already. I hear you still water her every day. Has she bloomed yet from your love?"</p>
<p>Shadow snorted beneath a smirk, arms crossed.</p>
<p>Really, that fox was just too cute! Rouge did like the boy, so of course a bit of harmless fun at his expense had to happen!</p>
<p>Tails popped the disk into one of his tablets, avoiding her eyes and trying to refocus, "Anyways—is this all the passcodes, the building map-"</p>
<p>"It's everything my scouts were able to gather," she cut him off. "Still incomplete, but we'll work with it. So, remind me, just who's coming with us for tomorrow's escapade?"</p>
<p>Shadow was reviewing what Rouge's little metal spies had gathered for her on a private tablet of his own, "You, me, Tails, Sonic."</p>
<p>"Not Amy?"</p>
<p>"No. She has to deal with her concussion."</p>
<p>"Whatever you say," Rouge shrugged. "Shadow, can I see your chaos emerald?"</p>
<p>He blinked in surprise at her.</p>
<p>She added, huffing, "It's just so pretty! I sort of want to see something sparkly up close to cheer me up. All this has been so drab lately."</p>
<p>As Sonic was off visiting Amy and Tails wasn't an annoying, flamboyant, braggadocio competitor, Shadow felt it was safe to do so. He removed the bedazzling gem from his quills and held it out to her. Inhaling and giggling in delight, she reverently took the big red piece of pricelessness and held it close to her face. Shadow watched her slowly turn it about, while Tails looked from one to the other with unsure apprehension. Unbeknownst to Shadow, Rouge was carefully examining the jewel to see if the chaos energy was acting up inside. However, though she saw nothing, she held it a minute longer in utter joy over the feel of the cold, hard body.</p>
<p>Then, taking Tails completely by surprise, she handed it back to her teammate, "Thank you, Shadow. I feel quite revived now!"</p>
<p>She—she actually gave such a jewel back with no argument or persuasion? Tails wondered if he was seeing things.</p>
<p>Shadow simply tucked it back in his quills.</p>
<p>This was the most stunning, impossible, illogical thing Tails had ever beheld. More than Sonic running around at night as some crazy werehog ripping up forestry; more than Amy deciding to go on a date with someone else; more than Knuckles giving up his guardianship of the Master Emerald.</p>
<p>Rouge noticed Tails' bulging eyes and winked at him again, "Why don't you go lay down in Shadow's bed? It's getting late and he ought to get his beastly, sexy self back to Amy's house, anyway. That, and his favorite frenemy will be back any minute. Tomorrow night's a big time for us, too."</p>
<p>Shadow knew when he was being kicked out. He didn't care one way or another. Easily, he got up and walked to the door. "Tails," he looked to the fox, voice not unkind. "Make sure that blue simpleton doesn't mess up anything in my room. You're okay, though. I've seen that you keep your possessions in good order, so I'm not concerned about my things as long as you watch them for me."</p>
<p>And he took his leave.</p>
<p>The fox had been sitting on the ground, tinkering with something—always. His ears twitched and he rose on his knees, his two tails energetically whipping up and down, not realizing how happy and mystified he felt from Shadow's compliment. It made him feel so mature and respected!</p>
<p>Rouge smiled to herself.</p>
<p>A minute after, the door once more opened and Sonic blurred in.</p>
<p>"My, my suite is so popular!" She sighed melodramatically.</p>
<p>Tails rose and ran over to Sonic, so happy to see him, running his arms around his friends' middle. His Tails were still twitching up and down, reflecting how giddy and acknowledged he felt from both Sonic and Shadow.</p>
<p>"Whoa, Tails, bromance much?" Sonic reciprocated affectionately, holding tightly onto his younger friend. It wasn't often that Tails was so openly affectionate. It wasn't manly—or something—but Sonic really did enjoy it. Of course, though, with Rouge watching, he chuckled nervously, "What's up, Tails? You okay?"</p>
<p>"Sure!" The fox smiled up at him.</p>
<p>Sonic rubbed the kid's head and hugged him some more. As the duo stood there all sweet and brotherly, Sonic's smile dropped. His eyes hardened some and he eyed Rouge. Her mask of sly confidence had fallen, too. They both knew that the following day would bring hardship to their souls. They would protect each other. Things were about to permanently change, but being prepared for what they didn't know was frightening.</p>
<p>~~~</p>
<p>Flashes of light somewhere. Above? Then to the sides. Then above again. Metal rattling. Steps. A slightly sticky, rubber sensation on his arm and then dabs of wet, and then a sting. More rubbing, a bandage, and nothing. But the light remained. It would hang mercilessly above him for hours now, later, the next day. As long as he was breathing, most likely.</p>
<p>Dylan was surprised it even bothered him. Nothing should bother him, because he had no right to feel annoyed at anything or anyone.</p>
<p>He was tired. He would probably be tired, as well, until he was no more. Things he took for granted as a human were tremulously challenging in this small cage of a body he lived in now. Standing, taking steps, staying awake. Was that last one because the scientists kept him laced with sedatives?</p>
<p>He didn't know. No talking. No asking questions. His mother had made that clear. Him speaking made them all uncomfortable. No one wanted to remember he could think, feel, speak, grieve. Dylan still wasn't sure why, his only guess being that he was some animal they'd created and acknowledging he was sentient would rip down the barrier of self-insulated morality the scientists still clung to. Or, in other words, chosen ignorance of his consciousness was bliss for them.</p>
<p>Dylan's chest tightened and he curled up a bit tighter on the replacement mattress. The laboratory also held a crispness in temperature that was just a couple degrees too cold for him, leaving him overly cold, in addition to tired, hungry, and thirsty. They fed him through a tube, but at least he was given water to drink, every few hours. The sensation of something flowing down his throat helped remind him that he was still an actual living thing.</p>
<p>There were only sounds of footsteps, some beeps, coats swooshing. His ears tingled. It seemed he could hear much better than before. Not to mention his sense of smell. There were odors even in such a sterile place he was already sick of smelling.</p>
<p>It marveled Dylan that he was even bothered by those sensations and senses though. He didn't care. He couldn't care. There was no point to his life—to breathing. Yet, he kept breathing.</p>
<p>When Mr. Cray came to dress his leg wound again, Dylan didn't bother opening his eyes or reacting in any kind of way. Secretly, though, he could tell that Mr. Cray was trying to be soft with the bandages. After the scientist put his leg down, he approached and checked Dylan's chest bandage. To do that, he had to roll the hedgehog over, much to both of their noticeable discomfort. But he went as quickly about the business as he could and Dylan stared blankly off to the side as he was poked at a bit.</p>
<p>Then the man was out in the laboratory again and Dylan brought his bandaged leg back to his chest, burying his face in the mattress to continue to blot everything out.</p>
<p>Last night—no. He'd only just been able to stop constantly thinking about it, crying about it. He tried to blank his mind. The other scientists had arrived not long after his mother had cleaned up after what she'd done and had disposed the ashes of—</p>
<p>Dylan heaved a little, paused, and slowly exhaled. He didn't want to bring any attention to himself, though he was the reason everyone—everything was here.</p>
<p>No. He didn't care. Let them all do what they wanted. He was just the specimen, right? So, he lay, barely moving for hour after hour. More than once, Mr. Cray attempted to talk with him. Dylan ignored him and everyone else.</p>
<p>But then—there was the metal creak of the cage opening once more and this time he couldn't ignore that Mr. Cray was picking him up. Dylan let out a gasp and immediately shoved his arms around the man's neck, harshly grabbing at the back of his lab coat for support. To suddenly be up this high made him wince with a surge of dizziness that he shook his head to drive away.</p>
<p>They were probably just moving him to some other area in the lab. However, the scientist turned and walked not only out of the laboratory, but cruised on by other such rooms with no detection to turn to any of them. Dylan was stunned, confused. They went out in the hall, a long, sterile tunnel of white. Two GUN soldiers, armored, clutching some type of semi-automatic rifle apiece, fell in a few steps behind them. It was even colder in the corridor, then in the next hall and through a series of exactly the same type of tunnels.</p>
<p>Dylan shivered, then feared receiving a bad response for feeling cold. Mr. Cray only adjusted Dylan closer against his chest in an attempt to share more of his body heat.</p>
<p>The two came to another thick, broad door that broke apart at the center and slid sideways to open. Mr. Cray walked down this one, too, and then—was that a window? Blue sky?</p>
<p>Thirsty to see, Dylan struggled to look back.</p>
<p>They turned one more time and a blast of warm, slightly humid air tickled his body. Reflexively, Dylan stiffened in surprise, and then he unwillingly sighed. They'd left the interior of the building and were waiting out front some place. There were seemingly endless structures around. It was a compound—or a campus, perhaps. GUN just the same.</p>
<p>Were they taking him to some worse place? Dylan involuntarily started trembling again. A black SUV pulled up before them. His heart started thumping at the sight of it. Why did he care? Why was he afraid? If he was truly apathetic to living, it shouldn't have mattered where he was taken or what they did to him.</p>
<p>But he did care.</p>
<p>He was just starting to struggle taking breaths, when Mr. Cray patted him on the back, "Dylan, relax. We're just going for a drive."</p>
<p>The man leaned in the back left passenger side, let Dylan drop to the seat, and buckled him in. He closed the door and stepped in on the other side. The two GUN soldiers silently sat down in the seats behind them. Their driver was also another soldier, albeit clad in a simple bullet proof vest and carrying only a holstered pistol.</p>
<p>The vehicle rolled away. At first, Dylan was too afraid and stunned to move at all. A roll of blue tickled his vision and, after some tortuous seconds, he turned slowly to peer up, out the window at almost completely blue skies. Birds fluttered past. Puffy breaths of clouds sat in the lower heavens. Then trees began to slide by.</p>
<p>One slow movement, then another, and then Dylan slowly brought his naked hand to the window and pressed it. Unbuckling himself, he rose on his knees, both hands now against the glass, gazing out at everything. When he was taller, he wouldn't have had to raise himself up like this to see out. It was disorienting, but he suppressed the feeling, ignored how taxing just doing this was for him in this weak body.</p>
<p>A few days. It had just been a few days, but an eternity for him. Blue sky! People! Skyscrapers, soil, and grass. Street vendors. Open highway. Everything out there was so lovely and he longed painfully for it.</p>
<p>No. He wasn't allowed to be out there.</p>
<p>Creeping sadness caused Dylan to clench his fists, his forehead pressed to the window. Again, his very existence reminded him that he didn't belong to himself. There was nothing he was allowed to do.</p>
<p>He was no one.</p>
<p>Shaking his head, he tried to push that sadness away, but it choked in his throat, was about to overtake him when he half jumped from a foreign sensation in his head—no, in his—in his spines? Was that what they were called? It felt so, so nice. He just—</p>
<p>"Dylan," a pair of hands slid around him, not unkindly removing him back from the window to the other side of the seat. In a strange second, Dylan found himself pressed up against Mr. Cray's side, his back facing the man.</p>
<p>There was that wonderful feeling all over his head again. What was that? It felt so soothing, not just physically, but because it was an action of affection. To him. For him. Oh, how starved he'd been for just a sliver of feeling like this again, and he hadn't let himself realize it until now.</p>
<p>Tears quietly trickled down his face, which he didn't dare turn, lest the man behind him would see.</p>
<p>Mr. Cray began talking, "I don't think I've properly introduced myself to you, kid. I'm Jameson Cray. I'd like it if you just called me Jameson. I've been working on Project Miracle for what seems like forever now." He let slide a sad chuckle. "Well, it may sound impossible, but I succeeded in getting permission from Isolena to take you out today."</p>
<p>Silence.</p>
<p>He spoke more, pulling Dylan even closer, continuing to slowly run his hands through the hedgehog's spines, then tugging a slight, playfully on a peaking quill. The sensation around his fingers was odd and fascinating. Few people, he was sure, had ever had the privilege of doing this to a mobian, what with how the humans and mobians still, largely, distrusted the other.</p>
<p>A mobian. That's what Dylan was now.</p>
<p>Jameson smiled at himself. Yes, this was a privilege. This child next to him was as sentient and deserving of freedom as anyone else. The method of his birth didn't matter.</p>
<p>He sighed, "I was discussing with her how you needed physical and emotional stimulation to keep you healthy. We have state-of-the-art physical training and rehabilitation facilities back at GUN, but I could tell-well—" This was awkward to say, "I could tell you had no desire to live at all. You had decided to waste away, hadn't you?"</p>
<p>Still, Dylan said nothing. But Jameson could see and feel that Dylan's frame had softened. The boy was caught up in the head and quill massage he was receiving, kindness he was gluttonously eating.</p>
<p>He keenly observed every twitch from his little charge, "Well, I told her she should let me take somewhere you like, from-time-to-time. So, today, we're going to a place I know you'll like. I'll have to ask you in the future where you like to go, since approaching Isolena about it probably won't yield any results." At that, he chuckled with a downcast air. "So, all day today, you'll be building muscle, working on your mobility, walking, and range of motion."</p>
<p>"What?" Came a small, frightened voice.</p>
<p>Jameson playfully tugged a little on one of the two spines protruding from Dylan's back, "Ah, come on, kid, don't be surprised! You liked to walk before all this, didn't you?"</p>
<p>No response.</p>
<p>"Here, you'll need to wear this," he reached from behind Dylan to his wrist and strapped on what looked like a regular watch. It wasn't though. "This will monitor your vitals, and it's also a tracker for your location. You'll have to stay with me. Do you understand?"</p>
<p>Dylan slowly responded, "Yes." He was continually astonished at how kind Jameson's eyes were.</p>
<p>"Hey, move back over to your seat!"</p>
<p>Dylan gasped. The man softly pushed him back, moving over to the center seat himself. He was confused, until Jameson renewed massaging him. And then Dylan realized what the real reason was: he could once more see out the window clearly from this position, while being pampered. The joy he felt swelled up and he wiped his eyes.</p>
<p>It was quiet, before he sagged from an exhale, "Why are you nice to me?"</p>
<p>"Ah, now you're finally talking to me," responded the man, softly. "Why are you asking me that? I shouldn't be kind to other people?"</p>
<p>"But I'm—"</p>
<p>He cut him off, "You're Dylan."</p>
<p>"Not anymore."</p>
<p>"Give me a break! Listen, Dylan. Your mother is making a grave mistake. I don't care what her reasons may be or how she's grieving. She's wrong. And so are you for thinking differently about who you are. I was going to leave this entire project like an alcoholic going cold-turkey, but I can't now. Know why?"</p>
<p>Dylan crossed his legs on the seat, barely breathing.</p>
<p>"The first time I heard you speak, I knew I couldn't leave you without an advocate in there. Kid, all of us scientists fooled ourselves and now we're paying for it. We should pay for it. Not you. Don't think I haven't seen you struggling."</p>
<p>Dylan was struggling just then, too, finally unable to refrain from turning and meeting Jameson's eyes. He didn't even know him! But he did. This one man hadn't forgotten he was a person, too. Smaller in size than before, inhabiting a weak, pained body; but a person, a soul, an individual. He'd needed someone to remind him, from all he'd already been through. He just hadn't expected it to be a scientist.</p>
<p>He looked down, reaching to wipe his face again, but Jameson had pulled tissue forth and pressed it to Dylan's cheeks.</p>
<p>The little body crumpled, Jameson catching him, pulling him up into his lap into a tight hug.</p>
<p>"She said my dad's dead!" Dylan burst, head buried in the scientist's chest.</p>
<p>"He—he is, Dylan. I'm sorry."</p>
<p>"How?"</p>
<p>He didn't want to reveal exactly what had happened, but he also didn't want to lie. Jameson opted with, "I'm not exactly sure how it happened, but it seems your father was electrocuted in our previous lab. He most likely passed on immediately. GUN's report stated it was an accident, and that it was pretty terrible."</p>
<p>More sobs, "What about Berry?"</p>
<p>That chao again. Jameson maneuvered Dylan to sit fully across his lap, still rubbing his back as the boy clutched at the front of his shirt. "I gave him to a beautiful, kind, sweet girl who promised she'd love him with all her heart."</p>
<p>Was that not the right thing to say? Dylan cried more.</p>
<p>"Hey," he whispered to his little charge. "You need to try to calm down even if by just a little. You might make your heart upset."</p>
<p>"Why—why do I have heart attacks?" Dylan heavily exhaled, trying to calm his tears.</p>
<p>"It was a side-effect of placing a human heart into a hedgehog body. But we're honestly not exactly sure why. We just assume some slight incompatibility with that organ to the body. Also, we couldn't use any other heart, since only your blood was compatible. I think things like this keep us scientists humble. People tend to think we know so much, but then we find out we actually know so little."</p>
<p>Feeling dead and heavy, Dylan lay his body against the man's torso, "So, it was going to be me no matter what."</p>
<p>Not a question.</p>
<p>"I have hemophilia and a heart condition," Dylan softly continued. "And chaos emerald powder in my blood. What am I?"</p>
<p>Jameson found no words. After some seconds, and another sigh, Dylan lowered his eye lids a little, watching life outside falling past as the SUV hurried down the freeway. The guy wasn't going to get any affection when he was put back in his cage in the lab; therefore, Jameson had no care for what the GUN soldiers might have been thinking. He knew he tenderly cared about the boy in his lap as he ran his hands in and out, up and down, around on that furry head and through the quills for the rest of the trip.</p>
<p>The boy had sunk down into a half-asleep state when the SUV pulled into a lesser occupied parking lot. A series of walking paths wound in and out of tall fir trees. Picnic tables were scattered around. A few humans and mobians were playing tennis at a nearby court. Rich, thick grass spread everywhere. Very faintly, the sound of beach water swelled.</p>
<p>Dylan rubbed his eyes and sat up, still finding himself situated quite nicely in Jameson's lap. He felt slightly embarrassed, but didn't show it, asking instead, "Where are we?"</p>
<p>"At a big park. I'm going to take you on walks right now. As your legs get stronger, I'll introduce you to harder trails. And, since you still have hemophilia, we should protect your legs."</p>
<p>The man opened the door and gently picked Dylan up and set him on his feet on the ground.</p>
<p>"Stand there, please."</p>
<p>Dylan pressed his hand to the open door to steady himself. While the scientist took his lab coat off, Dylan started to look around. Happy sounds of laughter and talking floated about. Certainly, his hearing was far better than it had been before. He could even hear slight whooshing of wind, streams of it that blew around and through his body. It felt so good.</p>
<p>"Now, some mobians don't seem to care for clothing, but you need to put these on for now. I don't want you scraping yourself up. I also have some shoes for you to wear."</p>
<p>Said articles were a black T-shirt and charcoal jeans. The shoes were black, with a streak of bold green running up either side, from the tip of each shoe to the back. Both had black laces.</p>
<p>Dylan fingered the shirt and asked, rather innocently, "Why do some mobians not wear clothing?"</p>
<p>He'd always worn clothing and he liked it. Then again, he hadn't previously been covered completely by fur. Maybe that was why. It was unnecessary?</p>
<p>Jameson smiled in an amused sort of way. He took his GUN-issued jacket off that he'd been wearing under his lab coat, revealing a typical type of dark brown polo. There was no external trace of where he'd come from now. He just looked like an average, perhaps slightly uninspired man when it came to clothing choices.</p>
<p>Without further remark, Dylan pulled the black shirt on and then attempted to slide his legs into the pants. He started to stumble, with Jameson holding him up so he could finish the task. To do such a simple thing was so hard! His coordination was poor and he still felt unsteady on his limbs—but at least he knew why now. This body, he'd been told, had never moved on its own before his occupation.</p>
<p>Growing more frustrated, he at last brought the pants up and zipped them.</p>
<p>"Don't forget to, uh, let your tail out and—" Clearing his throat, the man positioned Dylan before him and attempted not to be awkward, adjusting the shirt so Dylan's two spines popped out a hole positioned at the back just for that purpose. Same with his tail at the back of his pants.</p>
<p>Dylan want to crawl under the vehicle and hide from his sudden sweeping embarrassment.</p>
<p>Neither spoke for some seconds after that strange task was finished.</p>
<p>Then, "Your shoes, Dylan."</p>
<p>"Oh—" he immediately went about fighting with those next.</p>
<p>Jameson wanted to help him, but this was the beginning of forcing that hedgehog body to work up some stamina. Not only that, it was as funny as it was painful to watch a teenager who'd never had balance problems work at such a simple task. All he did was hold onto the kid as he pushed his feet into the shoes and worked on the laces. Definitely another fascinating moment, as a scientist, but he kept that musing to himself.</p>
<p>"That's good. Let's go!"</p>
<p>"Where?"</p>
<p>"Around."</p>
<p>The driver remained with the vehicle, but the other two GUN soldiers slowly began following the duo. Dylan noticed they'd swapped out their gear for simple slacks and shirts, but both still carried a pistol apiece at their hips.</p>
<p>Of course, they'd be there. Always there. It was upsetting and—</p>
<p>A small bottle of water was suddenly before him.</p>
<p>"Here, drink when you're thirsty. You have pockets, so you carry it," Jameson shook it a little.</p>
<p>Slowly, Dylan took it and pushed it into his left pocket.</p>
<p>He was led to one of the many narrow, shaded trails that wove in and around trees like one of those confusing multi-route mazes. Only here, the point wasn't to find the end, but just to enjoy the breezes, the sound of the branches cracking, to let one's thoughts settle on pleasant things.</p>
<p>There wasn't much of that for Dylan. He stumbled and Jameson caught him, making no remark. Concentrating enough to keep walking, even albeit slowly, was more of a trial than he thought.</p>
<p>The two kept on at their slow, overly leisurely pace, with no one taking particular notice of them. Everyone that jogged or walked past were too involved in each other or their activity to care about the less-common sight of a human and a mobian spending time together.</p>
<p>They were no one and it was nice. Side-by-side, they kept on in this manner for quite some time. Never speaking. At length, Dylan pulled the water out and took a sip. It was so very delicious and cool, that he decided to drink all of it in one ten-second round.</p>
<p>But, as he was turning for a nearby metal garbage can, Jameson pointed to the left, "Recycle, please."</p>
<p>What? So, the man had been paying attention. The recycle bin was several steps away. Until then, Jameson had been there to catch him if he fell. Now, he had the mighty task of going all the way over there himself and back.</p>
<p>"Well?"</p>
<p>Dylan almost withered at him, but alas, with no choice, he did his best. At the bin, Dylan paused, staring up at the mouth. Were receptacles always this tall? Wait—of course not. He was just a lot shorter now, a depressing realization that brought back memories of when he was a child and everything was too high; everything had been built for adults—for humans. Not being able to see over counters had been the worst! Now he had to deal with that for the rest of his life?</p>
<p>With an angry jerk, he tossed the bottle upward and it actually dropped right inside the large thing! He smiled slightly, turned, took a step, and stopped. A chirping blue chao baby came fluttering past. Mesmerized, he watched it make a twirl in the air and grab onto a second chocolate-colored chao in moments of blissful friendship.</p>
<p>A high-pitch voice called out to the right of him, "Cheese, Chocola! Don't go over there!"</p>
<p>He turned.</p>
<p>A little tan-colored rabbit in an orange dress was hurrying after the two chao. Hadn't he seen her before? Surely, he had, but he couldn't recall where.</p>
<p>She ran past and jumped up to grab the chao, who fluttered higher and seemed to laugh at her expense.</p>
<p>"Now, you two!" The little girl put her hands on her hips.</p>
<p>Still her chao just spun around each other and waved down at her.</p>
<p>Dylan stepped forward and grabbed both of the chao, to their and the girls' surprise. At least he was still tall enough to reach some things.</p>
<p>"How do you manage two chao? I had one for a while. They're fun, but so much to deal with."</p>
<p>Her sparkling cinnamon eyes lit up as the two babies were dropped in her waiting arms. After snuggling them and giggling, she looked up at Dylan. "Thanks, mister! I was supposed to watch them, but I got distracted, and then they were over here! I'm so glad you helped me! My mom would have been really mad, if they did something naughty! I'm Cream. Who are you?"</p>
<p>Taken aback both by how much she could talk and by her sheer searching, sweet eyes, Dylan faltered, "I'm—"</p>
<p>But Jameson called out, "Dylan! Let's go!"</p>
<p>The rabbit giggled, "Dylan? That's a nice name! It was really nice to meet you. I hope we'll see each other again!"</p>
<p>She was waving. Awkwardly, Dylan gave her a wave back and turned to hurry back. Neither realized just how much endurance he'd already built in his legs, until he was standing at the scientist's side.</p>
<p>At the same time, they both paused.</p>
<p>Jameson raised an eyebrow, "Did you really just jog over here?"</p>
<p>"I—I did?"</p>
<p>"It's only been an hour and you've already gotten that strong," the man shrugged rather nonchalantly. "I guess it's true all that stuff about hedgehogs: stamina and energy and such."</p>
<p>They started walking again and redirected their wandering to an even thicker overgrowth of trees and brush, so that they were almost completely left in sweet-smelling privacy.</p>
<p>Jameson started to talk while they kept sliding around this and that way, "Dylan, always try to keep yourself from getting too worked up about anything: too scared or upset, for instance. When you tighten your body up to that degree, that's when your heart starts to struggle and you'll have a collapse. You almost did that in the car."</p>
<p>Oh. That's why the man had comforted him? Not because he cared? Because dealing with a heart attack patient would have been highly inconvenient?</p>
<p>Dylan looked to the right, out at a beach that seemed quite distant. He felt sad.</p>
<p>"What do you know about hedgehogs?"</p>
<p>What a sudden, strange question. The boy didn't bother thinking, just passively blabbing out, "They have spines that hurt if you touch them and they, uh, can run fast?"</p>
<p>A chuckle, "It may be a good idea for you to find out if you have good speed or any other skills that seem to just come with the territory of being a hedgehog."</p>
<p>He didn't want to find out. He didn't care. So, he didn't say anything.</p>
<p>They walked further and came to several dozen stairs. Wondrous smells wafted around him, all assortments of fried, grilled, and baked things; sweets, breads, spices. Sounds of tinkling glasses, movements of dining ware, someone dropping a piece of silverware caused Dylan's ears to flitch. He looked up at the seemingly impossible distance from his current location at the bottom and all that wonder awaiting at the top of the stairs.</p>
<p>Then, Jameson began to ascend. When Dylan didn't follow, he turned with expectant eyes. This was more work. There was no way around and no way he could avoid it.</p>
<p>Honestly a bit worried, Dylan took one step up, then another and another. There was a rail, so he gripped it quite firmly as he tried to hold in his progressively-taxed breathing. Would they ever reach the top? He was tired, every step twice as difficult as the previous one.</p>
<p>A small voice from above him whispered, "You can do it, Dylan."</p>
<p>He whipped his face up, but Jameson's eyes were focused forward again. The man had said it, though. A small flutter broke in Dylan's heart and he pressed upward, focused entirely on succeeding.</p>
<p>And he did! With a gasp, grasping the railing at the top, he gave himself a minute or so to breathe and calm down. That was what Jameson had said, after all: don't tax himself too hard or get too upset. Figure out his limits and don't go past those. Then he'd be okay.</p>
<p>Okay. What did it mean to be okay? Was that being able to awake without dreading, fearing every second? Was it to contain the knowledge that he was a free person who belonged to himself?</p>
<p>He didn't have any of that, and he felt downcast again.</p>
<p>And Jameson, who was uncanny it seemed at sensing just how Dylan was feeling, scooped him up and placed him on a bench.</p>
<p>"Just rest a minute. I'll get us something fun to eat."</p>
<p>That honestly sounded so nice, Dylan made no remark. The two GUN soldiers stood across the path, looking about.</p>
<p>Birds chirped from uncertain locations, always changing, always with slightly different sounds. Tulips and roses and an assortment of flowers lined the walking paths, which opened up to his left into a very large, white concrete sphere. Booths and vendors positively packed the entire space, bleeding out a bit to the regular trail. This was where hundreds of humans and mobians were packed, browsing things and buying soaps and snacks and talking happily. It was, after all, a soft, peaceful day. Delightful, even.</p>
<p>Again, that little girl's voice was heard. Dylan turned to the opposite direction. She was skipping along with her two chao, a taller, adult rabbit trailing her. Of course, she noticed Dylan and immediately came hurrying up until she made one considerable jump and landed right before him, hands behind her back, perfectly composed.</p>
<p>"Hello, Mister Dylan!"</p>
<p>"H—hi," he hadn't ever been that good at socializing, human or now hedgehog.</p>
<p>The little rabbit grunted and popped up next to him on the bench. The two chao fluttered down, one on her lap and the other—</p>
<p>Dylan almost gasped. The brown one settled on him.</p>
<p>"Want to see something pretty?"</p>
<p>"What?" He snapped his attention to her, feeling heat rising to his face.</p>
<p>She brought a phone screen up before him, "Isn't this pretty? My mom made a bunch of these to sell today! All the money we make will go to the children's hospital in Station Square. The hospital helps humans and mobians. Isn't that just wonderful when everyone gets along?"</p>
<p>The picture in question was of a large display of cupcakes with swirls of lavender frosting and white sprinkles strewn atop every single one of them. They shimmered in silver wrappers.</p>
<p>Unable to help himself, Dylan looked closer. How long had it been since he'd baked anything? That triple-layer cake, right? Hopefully his mother had been decent enough to drop it off for the charity some days ago. That was the least of his worries, now, though. But—the cupcakes in the picture did look very well-done, although he knew he could do much better with no effort at all.</p>
<p>He'd never say that though, instead opting for a kind, "Yeah, those look really great! Did you help your mom make them?"</p>
<p>"Oh, yes!" The little girl was very proud of herself.</p>
<p>Dylan smiled secretly.</p>
<p>That was when Jameson returned with three cupcakes, apparently having seen the rabbit hop up on the bench. With a chuckle, he handed one to Dylan and offered one to the girl, "I couldn't come back without getting you one, right? That would have been rude!"</p>
<p>Cream turned to her mother, who was keenly observing the group. She nodded.</p>
<p>"Wow! Thank you, Mister!" And the girl took the sweet, beginning to loosen the wrapper.</p>
<p>"I can bake pretty good," Dylan had no idea why he'd revealed that, feeling suddenly imperiled.</p>
<p>"You can?" Jameson sounded genuinely surprised. "Your mother never mentioned that." He abruptly fell silent.</p>
<p>Dylan sighed, "I'm not surprised. I don't think—" His breath hitched and he looked out at all the happy people walking to and fro. "I don't think I knew her." Another pause. "Oh, well, yeah—I've been working on the whole baking thing for a while now. I got really good at making all sorts of things—truffles, tortes, pies and cobblers; of course, cakes and cookie and brownies. A lot of more advanced things. I was even thinking of opening a patisserie store when I was done with high school."</p>
<p>"What did your dad think of all that?"</p>
<p>Dylan finished the cupcake and leaned to the left, dropping the wrapper in a trash can, "He seemed generally supportive."</p>
<p>Nothing was asked about what his mother thought of it. The correct assumption was that she'd given little true interest in it. Dylan put his hands in his lap and looked at them rather blankly.</p>
<p>He let out a grunt of surprise as the girl stood up to wipe frosting off his mouth with a napkin.</p>
<p>"You can still do that!" Surprising him a second time, the little rabbit leaned over and hugged him. "My mommy always tells me that if you really want to do something—if you really like something—and if you put in a lot of time and effort to get good at it, then you should have a chance to find out if it's your dream!"</p>
<p>"How are—" Dylan stopped talking. Her innocent affection humbled him. She didn't know him at all, yet she was snuggling against him in the most tender, sweet, honest way he had ever experienced. Neither of his parent had acted like this to him. Even his chao, who loved him completely, wasn't capable of expressing affection in this manner.</p>
<p>Ever so slowly, Dylan relaxed and dropped his arms; then he slid them around her; then he pulled her in a little and reciprocated her love. In the brief moment, he felt more hope and joy than he had even in years past as a human. This was real. It might have been the only time he could experience it again, so he was going to give it back and not be afraid.</p>
<p>"You'll be fine, Mister Dylan," Cream stepped back and hopped off the bench. "Cheese, Chocola, we need to go! Thank you for the cupcake, Mister!" With one more wave at them, she skipped back to her mother and the two rabbits drifted into the large crowd of people.</p>
<p>"It's not universal, of course, but I've observed through the years that mobians often seem to be more open with affection and willing to forgive. I wonder why humans are so reserved and suspicious? I think, at times, that it would be good for humans to learn a few things from mobians."</p>
<p>Dylan couldn't process that philosophy just then. He could still feel the little arms around his neck.</p>
<p>Jameson dropped his own wrapper in the trash, "I've thought about it enough to have my own assumption that it's because humans still tend to think of mobians as nothing more than freak animals with some lower form of awareness. It's a threat to them, a reminder of that us humans made a terrible mistake in the past. But mobians, I also think, need to work a bit at being less naïve, generally. Or, is that part of their charm? All this human-mobian distrust needs to stop, regardless. I think we're all on the same plane of consciousness."</p>
<p>Dylan had absolutely no ability to think on what the scientist had just said.</p>
<p>And so Jameson rose and stretched a little, "We've been here a while. Let's go to the beach, then we need to get back."</p>
<p>That caused Dylan to jerk and his stomach dropped. Back. Back to that cold lab. Back to glaring white lights and needles and talking about him as the specimen while he was present.</p>
<p>"Will—will we come back, soon?"</p>
<p>Reading his mind, Jameson dropped a hand on his head, "I promise, Dylan."</p>
<p>With a slow nod, Dylan forced himself to be brave. He got up and turned to walk with his guardian. After a minute, Jameson took his hand and squeezed it with assurance. Dylan said nothing, his emotions rising in gratefulness and sadness at the same time.</p>
<p>The sun was starting to dip. Their walking pace had generally increased, as Dylan had made remarkable progress with his balance and walking. Soon enough, they broke from the shaded path to a very large, long spread of beautiful golden sand. Hundreds of people were still lazing about, sunbathing, swimming, running around, though in another hour, the beach would empty out.</p>
<p>"Take your shoes off. Let's go sit down on that big log over there."</p>
<p>He pointed to a large piece of deadwood not unlike the one Dylan had sat on many times with Berry. He wondered Jameson knew about that ritual of his, but he said nothing, complying with the man's order about his shoes. The sand was a whole new sensation and challenge. Not once did the human release his grip on Dylan's hand, which he was grateful for, as he stumbled once on the soft, sinking earth.</p>
<p>When they reached the log and sat, the sun was beginning to set.</p>
<p>Jameson chose that tranquil moment to drop a shocking confession, "If there was a way for you to escape, I would help you."</p>
<p>The sun slid further down, throwing a burst of pink in front of them. Gold fire slid across the tips of clouds. Dylan thought he hadn't heard right, so he remained quiet. Tears were threatening to form and he didn't want to cry, after how peaceful things had been for him that day.</p>
<p>With a sigh, he pushed his toes into the sand, as he'd always loved to do, and closed his eyes, hugging his arms to his chest, leaning forward a little to catch every scent and the feel of the wind around him. Savor every second. After what he'd gone through, promises of returning were all but hollow. He'd taken so many things for granted, including this—a sunset. Sand. The sky.</p>
<p>The words repeated, intruded into his ears, "Nothing can justify what we've done to you. I'm sorry Dylan, but I promise to help you in any way I can."</p>
<p>Dylan softly asked, "What if helping me doesn't help you?"</p>
<p>"I don't care," Jameson didn't have to think about that. "It's not very scientific for me to say this, but I believe every person—human and mobian—has a soul, and that a person's soul is who they are. The soul doesn't change or disappear if the person changes. Dylan, you are the same person you were before. Your soul is the same as it always was. Don't ever forget that. Don't let anyone make you doubt that. You should be free."</p>
<p>Free. Tears trickled down his face. Dylan watched the decadence of colors fading on the waning sunset and felt in his body that he'd never know what freedom was again. This was his existence now.</p>
<p>And then they had to leave. The ride back was a quiet one. Dylan did his best to be brave and not let his body show that inside he was actually loathe with fear to go back into that prison. But he had to. Jameson didn't carry him this time, but he held Dylan's hand firmly.</p>
<p>The two GUN soldiers were behind them the entire walk through the corridors of white, standing just inside the lab when they entered. Dylan stood there passive and obedient, removed his clothes and shoes, and handed them to the man.</p>
<p>There was no one else in the lab, which, though odd, gave Dylan relief to release some of his fear. Somehow, he believed this man, but only this man. When Jameson approached the cage and opened it, Dylan only lingered a couple seconds before resigning himself to the mattress. But, he at least had some hope now.</p>
<p>Before Jameson took his leave, he sucked some of Dylan's blood from a needle and took his temperature. All through this, Dylan remained still, laying on his side, but he watched the scientist at work. And then Jameson met his eyes and he smiled, which almost caused Dylan to do likewise.</p>
<p>"I gotta get on home and sleep, kid, or I'll be too tired to come back for the next shift. You want me to come back, don't you?"</p>
<p>Immediately, softly, Dylan responded, "Yes."</p>
<p>They were both surprised at his sure immediacy, then Jameson chuckled kindly.</p>
<p>"Kid, I really like you. If you keep acting like that, you'll steal my heart."</p>
<p>But he wanted that; he wanted to steal the boy away and go somewhere unknown and make Dylan's life wonderful. The child deserved a brother or father figure—or just someone he felt was trustworthy—to give him familial love.</p>
<p>Compassionate, as Jameson was still in the cage, he leaned down on his knees and pulled Dylan up, giving the boy a strong, filling hug. "I promise you won't be in here forever. Every egg cracks. Every dam breaks. We're all mortal, so as the days go by, at least we know that nothing terrible lasts forever."</p>
<p>Dylan reciprocated the love that was given to him by taking hold of the man as well.</p>
<p>Then Jameson gently lay him down and kissed his forehead, "Try to sleep, Dylan."</p>
<p>He rose, gathered his instruments and the vial of blood, and locked the cage. And then he took himself out of the lab and the lights actually dimmed some.</p>
<p>Dylan emptied his mind the best he could. In that quiet place, he drifted off. However, it was that night that Jameson's words about nothing lasting forever came to pass. Dylan experienced an event that neither of them would have comprehended. There was a horrific scraping sound coming ever closer, then explosions. The lights changed to red and sirens began to screech. One last burst somewhere in the laboratory was the last thing Dylan saw with some clarify, before he couldn't stop his throbbing heart from cascading him into a seizure of breathless terror.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Into the Heart</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>She sipped her tea and some of it missed her mouth, dribbling down the front of her red dress. That figured. Now she'd have to change it and run it through the wash! Huffing, Amy stood and stepped away from the table, going about to throw the dress off of her and put on that other, less girlish red dress with the stockings. No one had noticed her change of wardrobe when she'd sported it that last time. Why'd she even bother changing her wardrobe? Sure, she'd been a little sick of the same dress, but she'd also wanted acknowledgment that she'd looked different in a positive way. Not even Shadow had-</p>
<p>She walked out of her room and her tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth. Shadow. She'd forgotten he was still in her house. Honestly, she never heard when he arrived, if he didn't give her the grace of knocking, or when he left. But, obviously, he'd come in at some point, and now her dirty red dress was draped atop his head.</p>
<p>His arms were crossed, he unmoving.</p>
<p>"I'll just take this," she sheepishly giggled, coming just close enough to peel the piece of clothing from him. How odd. If this had happened to Sonic, Amy wondered if she would have reacted in a much more embarrassed way. Shadow had a sense around him that told her this kind of thing wasn't such a big deal, and so she automatically reacted in a more subdued way.</p>
<p>He invited himself to her couch, "How does your head feel?"</p>
<p>"Uh-it feels okay most of the time."</p>
<p>"Good. Stay here tonight. I'm asking you to do this, because you don't seem to obey and when you do that, you sometimes end up complicating things. What we're going to do very late tonight is going to be dangerous."</p>
<p>Amy felt anger rising, slamming the washing machine mouth shut, "I can handle it!"</p>
<p>So, he thought the same about her as the others! That she was just a distraction, a nuisance, an incompetence, silly girl who made things harder for everyone!</p>
<p>"Yes, you can, but I don't want you to go while you still have a concussion. If you were fine, I'd be pleased for you to assist."</p>
<p>All her anger and misunderstanding of his previous words evaporated in a second. Instead, Amy felt her cheeks warming.</p>
<p>Then, Shadow added more words that made Amy feel very flattered, "Also, your apartment is the rendezvous point. Most likely, we'll all have to go someplace remote for a while, after we convene here briefly. You'll come with us then."</p>
<p>"Really?" She gasped with utter abandon to any decorum and self-containment.</p>
<p>Almost, it seemed he smirked, "Would you rather stay here all alone, without your dear Sonic?"</p>
<p>Maybe. Then Amy gasped inside that she'd even thought that.</p>
<p>"N-no," she saved face. </p>
<p>Shadow rose, walked over, and peered curiously at her face. Amy leaned away. What, was something on it? Chocolate? Dressing from her salad earlier? But he then turned and went back to the door.</p>
<p>"Wait for me," was all he said, but it was three incredible words Amy found that she nearly swooned at. Why was her heard beating so rapidly? Everyone knew Shadow was a nasty, uptight, rude loner. Yet, everyone also knew he had dozens of complicated barriers hiding someone she only got to see every now and then, a deep and concerned person that was as hesitant about himself as she was afraid to actually, seriously try his barriers. What was Shadow like, past all those defensive shields?</p>
<p>"Wait, are you going out? It's still early!"</p>
<p>"I'd prefer to be alone for a while, Amy," was his not unkind response.</p>
<p>Amy felt oddly downcast and just nodded, "Okay. Please, be safe, Shadow."</p>
<p>He stood still and blinked at her, those hard, red eyes softening with a shimmer that Amy knew she'd seen. He turned, shut the door, and her apartment was quiet.</p>
<p>+++++++</p>
<p>No more time left to wait. The sun had left them behind hours ago. The city was as quiet as it would be for this time of late night, or early morning. Everyone was present and ready, just somewhat impatiently and anxiously waiting on her to get up and motion them to follow. Yet, she only twitched her boot and let a small sigh slip.</p>
<p>Rouge was finishing a few seconds of review of the corridors and outline of the building, and then she finally hopped off the couch and eyed her team: Sonic, Tails, and Shadow. </p>
<p>"Well, my dears, let's not be late for our date!"</p>
<p>"Finally!" Sonic and Tails grabbed each other's hands and squeezed them, the energy nearly palpable. </p>
<p>"Don't expect me to do any of that lame hero stuff," Rouge rolled her eyes. "Everyone have their communicators?"</p>
<p>All three of her boys lifted their wrists so she could see the glowing of the metal communication devices. Bunch of sasses!</p>
<p>She stuffed nothing in her belt besides a few small tablets and devices. With as little sound as possible, they took the elevator up to the roof, stepped out, and took places in or on Tails' Tornado.</p>
<p>"I've programmed my plane to auto pilot to land on Amy's apartment roof after we make our entrance. I assumed that, after this, GUN will raid the Hotel le Beauté in search of us and, well, obviously, I don't want my plane turned into GUN bullets."</p>
<p>Shadow nodded in approval, "Good thinking."</p>
<p>"Thanks! So, we'll regroup at Amy's and probably take the Tornado after to wherever it is that we'll be heading."</p>
<p>Everyone nodded. Shadow and Sonic sat on the wings and Rouge situated herself in the back seat. The plane glided and smoothly angled up toward the stars. No one spoke, not even for the usual banter. This was not the same as flying in to ruin one of Eggman's plans-at least, hopefully, it wouldn't transform into that. GUN wasn't really into the whole evil bantering business and never took kindly to any invasion of their compounds. At least Eggman had some sense of humor when he reacted. GUN? Never. Just the Commander flying into a tightfisted sizzle and ordering immediate destruction to all invaders. So dry.</p>
<p>The half moon observed the four of them cruising, then dipping, then a sudden, silent ejection of all four of them jumping out of the endless scroll of the GUN campus. As if it had a mind of its own, the Tornado performed a spin and reared back up to the sky, evening out at a higher altitude, turning about, and heading in the direction they'd come.</p>
<p>More silence reigned as Rouge and Shadow descended slowly to the top of a structure. Tails grabbed Sonic and lowered them both down. All four planted their feet atop the roof of the building right across from their target of focus.</p>
<p>"Remember," Rouge whispered, "Sonic and Shadow will take the lead. Tails, you and I take care of the entry codes and all that fun geekery."</p>
<p>The fox smiled, "We're a great team!"</p>
<p>Really, she liked that kid.</p>
<p>Shadow only nodded, slipping down. The three followed. There was nothing: no sound, no disturbance. Then a belch of fire exploded at the entrance to the building. Sirens immediately blared and soldiers came pouring out from various directions.</p>
<p>"Go!" Shadow stepped to the front with Sonic. </p>
<p>The hedgehogs remained at the entry, then ducked back inside after their companions. As they kept an eye on the onslaught approaching, the bat and the fox began a frenzy of work behind them.</p>
<p>"Just give us a few seconds!" Tails hollered. </p>
<p>In front of Sonic and Shadow, a backup entry door slammed shut, blocking them from the outside rush. "That'll buy us some seconds!"</p>
<p>"Good job, Tails," Sonic ran over to his friend. They shared a most likely highly premature high-five and ten the four of them addressed the next door in their way.</p>
<p>Rouge and Tails were at the panels in a blink, tapping away.</p>
<p>"This particular GUN building has ten levels of doors from us to the laboratory of our focus. Each level that goes in deeper is, supposedly, harder to break. Let's see if we can set a new record, right boys?"</p>
<p>Right after she spoke, Rouge tapped on the screen and sneered. The inner door opened. Without a word, they two sunk back inside and shut the doors.</p>
<p>"Eight more doors to go!" Sonic seemed overly enthused.</p>
<p>A set of robots immediately popped out from tunnels to the left and right. As he and Shadow sprang up to destroy them all, Rouge and Tails again fastened their attention to the computer terminals.</p>
<p>To Sonic's confusion, Shadow accompanied him perfectly enough, spin dashing and throwing his body clear onto the machines to crumple them into trash; but he didn't use any chaos attacks. He just relied on his brute strength, agility, and instincts. It was rather imitative of him, to an extent, and he wasn't going to insult Shadow for how timely and graceful he was at purely using his organic skills, though Sonic was perplexed.</p>
<p>"It's locked!" Tails lamented.</p>
<p>"Yes," Rouge sounded upset. "This was one of the doors that I couldn't even get a hint of an access code from. We can break it, but it will take longer than the time we have."</p>
<p>Tails turned to peer up through the rubble of their arrival, "GUN's defenses are about to break through the first door in just a minute, so we can't spend any more time trying to get this one open!"</p>
<p>"No problem!" Shadow motioned to the others.</p>
<p>All four fell in to his sides and, together, they burst through the halls, Sonic and Shadow dropping a few steps in front, shoving and attacking every person they saw. Now that they'd broken through security section four, there were human soldiers mixed in with attacking robots.</p>
<p>A gun clattered to the floor. With a smirk, Shadow picked it up-and then a second pistol for good measure.</p>
<p>Sonic rolled his eyes, "Gun better than chaos blast?"</p>
<p>No remark from Shadow, except, "Do you even know how to shoot one? You're lame."</p>
<p>"Says the guy who has to use rocket shoes to keep up with me-and still barely can even with that."</p>
<p>Shadow scowled.</p>
<p>Rouge turned to them, "Fight after, boys!"</p>
<p>With a mutual scowl, the two hedgehogs blasted past Tails and Rouge to continue on. Corridor after corridor, turning this way and that, with Tails and Rouge correcting their paths, overriding systems, struggling at times with consoles, they made savage speed to their destination. Door after door, akin to adventures past, shut before them, with more soldiers and machines attempting to block them at every progression. They fell deeper into the metal building and succeeded in forcing another door shut, instead of blasting it to pieces, giving themselves more time.</p>
<p>Sonic kept his eye on Shadow. There seemed to be nothing amiss with him, but he still hadn't used a single chaos ability. Another door slammed shut before them and Tails slipped up before the console, inserting a probe to extract the access code.</p>
<p>As they waited, several soldiers slid out from the right hallway to fire. Shadow raised his gun and shot one in the leg. He burst forth, hands fisted, laying it into the humans mercilessly.</p>
<p>They fell, groaning. But even after they were still, he leveled his gun at them.</p>
<p>"Shadow, no!" Sonic grabbed his ally's arm and whipped Shadow around. "They're down, Shadow. Were you going to kill them?"</p>
<p>"They're not on our side," he snapped.</p>
<p>"But-they're GUN, and so are you!"</p>
<p>"I doubt that after tonight," he muttered, agitated about something else.</p>
<p>Sonic was highly suspicious now, asking, "We'll just chaos control out of the lab, right?"</p>
<p>Shadow opened his mouth-</p>
<p>Tails jumped, "Success! We're almost there!"</p>
<p>"Let's go!" Rouge was already running again, Tails at her side. "This would be so much easier if you had some of your machines, Miles," she huffed at Tails.</p>
<p>They knew why he couldn't have brought any. Busting in was one thing. With GUN surely reinforcing and locking the doors behind them that they hadn't outright destroyed with at least triple the security and firepower, it would have been slow and disastrous to bring some bulky, slow machine along with them. They had to be fast, small, agile, quick to maneuver.</p>
<p>"Hey, we can handle it, right Shadow?" Sonic smiled.</p>
<p>Shadow smirked and nodded. This time, Sonic was right.</p>
<p>The team came to the last door and Tails again turned to the console, "This one's different."</p>
<p>"And I wasn't able to extract the access code for it, either," Rouge remarked.</p>
<p>"Yes, because it doesn't open by any code. We can't hack it. It requires a rather old-fashioned key card to slide through. That's surprising, considering how high-tech GUN is!"</p>
<p>"Or paranoid," Shadow interjected. "Hiding something in there behind a hack-proof door?"</p>
<p>"But not a blast-proof door!" Sonic exclaimed.</p>
<p>All three turned to Rouge, who perked up and looked from one to the other. "You-what? Wait-you want me to kick it down?" She huffed, "What, you boys bored of destroying the doors yourself?"</p>
<p>"My arm kinda hurts," Sonic touched it for emphasis.</p>
<p>Shadow just said nothing.</p>
<p>Rouge lowered her eyes at them, "Oh, sure, leave it to the girl! Okay. Fine. Everyone stand back!" She scurried to the door and planted a small, beeping sphere on it. Motioning, everyone took some steps back. Behind them, they could hear soldiers running, heavy machines trailing. The red lights were still flashing, the corridor otherwise dim.</p>
<p>Then, a mangled explosion caused them all to duck automatically and smoke rose everywhere. </p>
<p>"In we go!" Rouge and the others leapt forward in sync and slid to a halt inside a square-shaped laboratory. At the center was a thick, grayish-blue console of sorts, fastened from the floor and rising up through the ceiling. All four walls were nothing but computers and touch monitors. And, the otherwise pale white light in this place had also been replaced by sirens and flashing red pulses.</p>
<p>"Grab the candy we came for," Rouge pointed to a cage set up in front of them. "Tails and I will try to find where in this lab that piece of rock has been hidden!"</p>
<p>Shadow and Sonic nodded and headed for the cage.</p>
<p>Rouge and Tails ran to adjacent kiosks.</p>
<p>"We have only a minute at most," she spoke quickly. "Those pesky GUN minions are coming, and since we destroyed the door to the lab, we have nothing to give us even a few more seconds."</p>
<p>"Sonic and Shadow will hold them off!" Tails assured. </p>
<p>Their hands blurred over the keys, searching, searching.</p>
<p>Rouge was honestly feeling a bit frustrated, "Why is there nothing included in the database here about that chaos emerald? It has to be here! I saw that it was in the previous lab!"</p>
<p>"Where was it in the previous lab?" Tails asked, running to another kiosk on the other side of her.</p>
<p>"Well-they had it on some skinny pedestal that looked like it came from-" Abruptly, she gasped, turning and scanning the metal floor around them. "Tails, look for a circular outline on the floor. That's where it's going to be!"</p>
<p>A bit confused, Tails nonetheless obeyed. The two began walking about the lab, scanning the floor, unblinking.</p>
<p>Nearby, Shadow ripped the entire side of the cage like it was nothing but paper and burst in, snatching the hedgehog from the floor into his steel grip. Turning, stepping back to the wall, he observed his colleagues. Sonic slid over to Shadow and peered at their new member with some curiosity. </p>
<p>Rouge glanced at the two. The new hedgehog was certainly awake. Something was wrong with him. But she couldn't focus on that right now.</p>
<p>"What are you looking for, Tails?" Sonic called.</p>
<p>"A circular panel in the floor that rises up. That's where the chaos emerald is!"</p>
<p>"I'll help!" He immediately joined them.</p>
<p>But there was no such shape. The three convened back at the kiosk, running out of precious seconds and growing more agitated. At was shadow who spoke, "Get the rest of that cage out of the way. Check the floor there."</p>
<p>"Of course!" Sonic stepped forth and spin dashed the other side of the cage, ripping it apart. He kicked the mattress and-there it was! The glorious shape!</p>
<p>Tails turned back to the computer, "Now that I know what we're looking for, I can-here it is!" With a pronounced pressing on the screen, there was a slight hiss and the circular panel rose.</p>
<p>Within was a glass container, and inside that, laying on a piece of velvet cloth, was a sparkling, golden chaos emerald. The golden light it produced bounced off the walls, casting odd shapes intermixed with the continuous flashing of the red light.</p>
<p>"Glorious!" Rouge nearly choked on her glee.</p>
<p>In a flash, Sonic broke the glass and plucked the emerald out. There was no way he was going to let Rouge grip it with her lustful fingers. She came over anyway, along with Tails. The three let out a dismayed gasp.</p>
<p>She scowled, "Just like I thought-look at that horrible cut!"</p>
<p>"I can't believe it!" Tails breathed. Running his eyes over the incision spanning down the top side of the emerald made him feel like he was looking at an open wound from surgery.</p>
<p>"We need to go," Shadow stated evenly.</p>
<p>Everyone whipped around. It was a peculiar sight: him, gasping onto a hedgehog almost as tall as he, with said hedgehog seeming unable to breathe properly, automatically gripping his arm rather rightly. But it was also upsetting. They needed to go, not just for their own safely, but for this hedgehog that was obviously suffering.</p>
<p>Steps. So many were stampeding down upon them. They'd run out of time. GUN would be blazing them full of bullets in less than a handful of seconds! And now, with their new debilitated cargo, they certainly wouldn't be able to make any proper escape. </p>
<p>"Shadow, you have to use chaos control!" Rouge's voice sounded strained.</p>
<p>Shadow and she caught each other's eye and they both knew how that was going to go. Anyone less acquainted with him wouldn't have noticed the pressing of his mouth, but Rouge did, and she felt upset as much for what it might do to him as what it meant if they didn't escape this place.</p>
<p>"Shadow!" Sonic yelled. He had no idea about Shadow's situation.</p>
<p>They all backed up to the back of the lab, where Shadow and his burden were standing.</p>
<p>"We gotta go now!" Sonic persisted.</p>
<p>Gritting with anger, Shadow dumped the mint green hedgehog into Sonic's surprised arms and pulled out his red chaos emerald.</p>
<p>Red laser targets filtered into the lab from an onslaught of GUN soldiers, who were breaching the broken door. "Surrender!" They shouted through the thick smoke.</p>
<p>Same old GUN. Trepidation surged through him, but Shadow masterfully overcame it. He darted a check to his colleagues to ensure they were right beside him, and then he squeezed the emerald, "chaos control!" In an otherworldly blast of red light, the five of them were gone and the chaos portal sealed shut.</p>
<p>On the other side of the transportation, Rouge and Sonic fell some feet down atop a roof under the stars of the very early morning. They were all tangled and awkward, with a horrible pain of some unknown origin seeping out of every fiber in their bodies.</p>
<p>Sonic rolled off of her, groaning and shaking his head. Rouge was familiar from the earlier chaos control to how this angry energy felt, but it was far worse now. She had no idea if Sonic had ever felt that specific type of repulsive energy, but when they stood and he eyed her with a stunned frown, she knew she didn't need to explain anything. Of course, he knew thoroughly then what was going on. A guy that had gone super over and over again was quite intimidate with the claws of chaos energy.</p>
<p>He blinked in turmoil, "So, there is something going on with Shadow."</p>
<p>"And you too, then; to anyone who can use chaos abilities. Don't try to go super while this is going on. It's quite indiscriminate," Rouge responded at first calmly, and then she pressed her fists to her chest. "Oh, I never want to feel that kind of pain again! I thought my arms were going to be ripped off my body!"</p>
<p>Sonic stepped forward to help her and then he realized it was just the two of them, "Hey, speaking of that, where's Tails and Shadow?"</p>
<p>The sparkling golden chaos emerald was yet in Sonic's hand. Rouge flickered her greedy eyes at it and crossed her arms, "We probably got split up, because you both were holding a different chaos emerald when Shadow invoked chaos control. But it looks like we're atop Amy's apartment, so they should just be catching up with us soon."</p>
<p>"We still should have ended up here, since we were all thinking of the same place," Sonic simply reasoned.</p>
<p>"Darling, things are just messed up right now, just like that yummy looking minty green hedgehog laying behind you."</p>
<p>With one little flicker of a point, Sonic abruptly spun about and gasped. Just like she expected, he hurried to the boy and rolled him on his back, propping him up. "Hey-hey, buddy, are you okay?"</p>
<p>"Obviously not," Rouge blinked, a little disturbed herself. This was that specimen from the lab. They'd intended to grab him, along with the chaos emerald, but here, now, as she stood before the creature, she was at a loss for words.</p>
<p>The hedgehog had a hand pressed to his chest, trembling. His breathing was erratic.</p>
<p>Sonic brought his glove up off the boy's forehead, eyes widening at his hand. Sweat was streaked on the white fabric. Their new acquaintance was perspiring quite a bit.</p>
<p>"What's wrong with you?" Sonic was at a loss.</p>
<p>Rouge stepped over, "Let's take him to Amy's apartment. It looks like he's having some kind of reaction-maybe to all that action? I mean, we just put him through quite a shock, and we don't know if he has any strange issues; you know, being grown in a lab and all."</p>
<p>Maybe she should have been a bit tactful there. It almost seemed to her that their new fare had heard her and comprehended, by his twitching ears and his eyes suddenly upon her.</p>
<p>Sonic stood and scooped the hedgehog up, "Okay, let's go then!"</p>
<p>He heard his charge let out a little gasp, but he couldn't stop now. He burst across the roof and whipped the door open, streaking down the halls, down the stairs for Amy's door. Rouge tilted her head, sighed, and ran after him.</p>
<p>Upon Amy's door, Sonic landed several rapid knocks and stood back. Now he knew something was absolutely off with this new hedgehog. The boy's breathing was worsening. He really seemed to be suffering. Sonic's heart wrenched. He hated it when people were in pain and he couldn't make everything fine immediately.</p>
<p>The door opened, with Amy stepping back in surprise as she took in the scene of Sonic standing before her, holding a heaving hedgehog. Though it could have been misconstrued as comical, the poor boy wasn't laughing.</p>
<p>"What's going on, Sonic? I knew you guys were coming back, but-what-"</p>
<p>"I'll tell ya inside," he blurred past her.</p>
<p>She closed the door, "Wh-who is that? Where's everyone else?"</p>
<p>"A new pal," he looked around awkwardly. "My arms are tired. Where can I dump him?"</p>
<p>"Ah-" Amy scurried over and looked around a second herself. "Uh, put him on my bed. It's okay. It's far more comfortable than my couch."</p>
<p>"You're swell, Amy," he ran into her room, which was set directly at the end of her rectangular, open apartment. </p>
<p>Someone else was knocking? Flustered, Amy opened it, "Rouge!"</p>
<p>"Thanks, darling," Rouge slid in, smirking to hide frustration at Sonic having left her behind. She saw the bedroom door open, and as Sonic and their new piece of meat were nowhere to be seen, naturally took herself over that threshold.</p>
<p>"Hey! Where's Tails and Shadow?" She raised her voice.</p>
<p>"Oh, they're coming, I'm sure," was all Rouge gave as an explanation.</p>
<p>It was quite a disturbing sight, at first study. Sonic was sitting on the bed, staring in partial horror and partial helplessness at the hedgehog who'd curled up, facing away, seeming to struggle with himself.</p>
<p>"What's wrong with him?" Amy entered and approached her bed.</p>
<p>Sonic shrugged, "I-I dunno. But it seems like he's sick?"</p>
<p>"You may be right, Sonic," Rouge added. "Amy, this is the specimen that the scientists grew for Project Miracle. He may have some odd health defects."</p>
<p>"Specimen?" Amy burst in absolute disbelief, gasping, gazing back at the mint green hedgehog in wonder and even slight fear. "He-he's artificial?"</p>
<p>"Not any more than Shadow," she leaned against the wall. "Say, it seems like he's having chest problems."</p>
<p>Bewildered, Amy looked from Sonic to Rouge, "Isn't anyone going to help him?"</p>
<p>"Do I look like a doctor?" Rouge sighed. "Look, we can't exactly take that child to a hospital, since we're GUN's most wanted; and none of us have any medical supplies. Oh, and it wouldn't matter if we did; my medic training didn't go over how to deal with this level of problem."</p>
<p>"Sonic!" Amy addressed him, feeling flustered and more and more afraid for the hedgehog who didn't seem to be improving at all. His entire body was trembling and his breathing was a mixture of gasps and choking. On top of him clutching at his chest, it looked awfully like he was emotionally upset, she realized. Rouge and Sonic were both standing at the side of the bed, now, observing in a useless way.</p>
<p>"Fine!" She pushed Sonic aside and dropped on the bed, leaning over to the hedgehog. "I'll just try to figure something out, then!"</p>
<p>Determined, she grabbed the boy's wrist and pulled, rolling him onto his back. Grunting, she whipped her leg over his waist and slapped her hand on his other wrist, effectively pinning him under her.</p>
<p>Delighted and surprised, Rouge glanced at Sonic. The blue blur's eyes were positively the size of moons, such was his abject horror and shock at seeing Amy physically sitting on top of another male. Despite no such romantic thoughts crossing Amy's mind, Rouge couldn't deny how the position looked. But, also, she found herself extremely amused at the entire situation-minus the health issue abounding-and said nothing, so as not to spoil watching Sonic's face contort in all sorts of delightful ways.</p>
<p>+++++++</p>
<p>Searing pain sizzled through him. Shadow clenched his fists as he was barfed out of his latest chaos control. He almost wretched, sand in his mouth. Slowly, he forced himself up and out of the nasty, gritty substance and focused, standing slowly. He was on a beach. Central City rose nearby behind him. </p>
<p>Wait-Sonic and Rouge weren't present.</p>
<p>Shadow peered about and spotted, only a few paces away, a white and golden body with two tails. At least that child had been spit out on his back, though the fox seemed to be unconscious. Had the kid felt the ripping chaos pain, too?</p>
<p>Shadow glided over to Tails and grabbed him by the arm. "Tails, wake up!" As he roughly pulled the kid up, Tails gasped.</p>
<p>"What was that horrible pain?" His eyes watered.</p>
<p>So, he had felt it. That pretty much inferred the others had, too-and that lab growth--</p>
<p>Shadow's eyes narrowed. "Tails," he pulled the boy to him. "Hold on. We seemed to have ended up separated from the others, but they're no doubt on their way to Amy's apartment. So, let's go there, too."</p>
<p>"Oh-whoa, okay!"</p>
<p>Tails was used to Sonic's speed and being whipped around, but Sonic had an enjoyable flare to how he'd run and toss Tails about. Shadow wasn't like that. The dark hedgehog clamped the fox against his chest and left a massive explosion of sand in his wake as he burst off the beach. With a powerful leap, he landed on sidewalk railings and took to grinding. They ended. He jumped again, landed, crouched, and bolted anew. </p>
<p>Tails felt his head spinning, but he didn't want to close his eyes. There was something different in this type of rush that was fascinating. Slowly, he turned his head to watch the city literally streaking past. Shadow's irises were hard and forward. That was fine. It put Tails at ease to further let his eyes scan their surroundings.</p>
<p>Then Shadow decelerated a little and Tails turned to face forward to see why. Amy's apartment complex was just seconds away. He remembered Shadow couldn't do exactly everything on foot that Sonic could. It wasn't necessarily because Shadow was incapable; it was just the truth that Sonic had spent far more time mastering speed as his technique, while Shadow had relied on his chaos abilities.</p>
<p>Pressing away from Shadow, Tails gave him a childish smile and burst up right out of his arms.</p>
<p>"Tails!" Shadow turned sideways to stop himself.</p>
<p>In that second, he felt the fox drop and grab his hands, before rushing upward again.</p>
<p>"What are you-"</p>
<p>"Sonic and I do this all the time! Trust me and just go with it! I know things are intense right now, but it's nice to still have a little bit of fun!"</p>
<p>"I-I don't like it! Drop me!" Shadow protested.</p>
<p>Tails kept flying higher and gaining speed, "What, can't you handle it, Shadow? This is faster to get to Amy's place and I thought the ultimate life form could do anything."</p>
<p>Just like he thought, he looked down with a smug grin and Shadow glared at him.</p>
<p>"This is nothing for Sonic! Okay, let's go!" Tails flung Shadow clear up and over him, releasing the hedgehog.</p>
<p>After an initial gasp, Shadow spun and kicked off the side of the building. Tails grabbed his hand and swung him up again, far higher than the first time. Shadow almost smiled-almost. The exhilarating wind and momentum were astonishing. He'd flung himself through the ARK and flown through space in super form, but he'd done that alone. Solo and in absolute control of his motions. He'd never had to rely directly on someone in this kind of manner, not even when he and Omega and Rouge had triaged a few years ago.</p>
<p>There was no premonition here. No planning or instruction. Yes, his shoes gave him some flight, but not enough to burst up the side of a building this tall.</p>
<p>He didn't know completely what the fox was capable of in the air and he had no clue what the boy was expecting of him. Tails laughed happily and Shadow understood that this free rhythm was just how it was supposed to be. It was less about skill and more about trust and fun.</p>
<p>Fun.</p>
<p>With a smirk, he found himself a third time trusting on the two-tailed boy.</p>
<p>"Let's get to the top, Shadow! This is faster than going through the building, right?"</p>
<p>That was true. Shadow turned to the side a last time, as Tails released him up into the air. He pressed a hand and foot to the sleek glass siding and burst up and off of it, lunging for the building next to it.  With a growl, he kicked one more time off that building, his shoes bursting him up the rest of the way, and with a graceful spin, he landed lightly on his feet on the roof.</p>
<p>Tails propelled up just a couple seconds after and landed next to him.</p>
<p>Shadow felt the boy's hopeful, expectant, glittering eyes on him. He took a step toward the rooftop door and calmly remarked, "That was invigorating. You may approach me for that kind of parkour again in the future."</p>
<p>He heard it, the slapping of Tails' hands together and the happy giggle, "Glad you liked it!" He jogged up to his senior and they hurried into the building.</p>
<p>In seconds, the duo was at Amy's door. It was unlocked, so Shadow didn't even bother knocking. Besides, he was still technically staying over at her place, so he casually entered, and then-</p>
<p>The sounds expulsing from Amy's room were somewhat disturbing. He and Tails shared a glance of disturbed confusing before he hurried in and almost snorted in shocked confusion.</p>
<p>Amy was on her bed, her hands clamped over that lab specimen. Nose scrunched, her legs squeezing the sides of the creature, she leaned over.</p>
<p>"Calm down! No one's going to hurt you! We-we saved you!"</p>
<p>That didn't seem to help. </p>
<p>Tails came in and let out an audible gasp, "Sonic, what's going on?"</p>
<p>"Tails! Where were you? Are you okay?" The two immediately hugged. Sonic then informed them, "This guy's having some kind of spasm. We don't know what. Just, if he doesn't calm down, he might really hurt himself."</p>
<p>"I might be able to help!" Tails pulled out a small scanner, to which no one was surprised he had such a thing stuffed. The kid was always hiding gadgets galore on his person. "This will give us a simple scan of his organic processes. It's not certified for hospital usage, but suffices for what we need."</p>
<p>"Well, scan already!" Amy half screeched.</p>
<p>Tails hurried over and leaned over the bed, extending the device. "You guys!" he gasped after a few seconds. "It's his heart! It looks like he's having a heart attack! But-there's something weird about it-"</p>
<p>"Who cares! How do we stop it?" Amy gasped and pressed the hedgehog's arms down again.</p>
<p>Shadow clenched his fists tight, "Normally, there'd be machine and medicine for this, but we don't have any such luxuries. Amy, your best chance is to calm him down."</p>
<p>Everyone became silent.</p>
<p>So, it was like that. No one came to her meditation sessions when she invited them, but now they all expected her to perform a miracle. Well, that's just what she'd do!</p>
<p>Amy turned back to her charge, determined. The poor boy looked more wretched and exhausted than defiant and her heart hurt for him. Her angry face melted and she leaned down, running her hands up his arms to his back. He grabbed at her so suddenly, so harshly, that she gasped, but then shook her head at Sonic, who was on the verge of ripping her off of him.</p>
<p>She noticed Shadow's face and felt befuddled. His eyes were slightly wide and he was stiff as a rock.</p>
<p>Not like she could help this. Amy refocused on her patient. She sat up straight, raising herself up on her knees, likewise forcing him up with her. And she then lowered them both down again; not laying, but sitting.</p>
<p>"It's okay," her voice was soothing this time, unlike the gritting rage before. "Calm down." Back and forth, she rubbed his back. "You're okay. Close your eyes and relax."</p>
<p>Almost imperceptibly, and then a bit more and more pronounced, the boy's trembling began to slow.</p>
<p>Amy continued, hugging him and patting his back and speaking softly, "You'll always be safe with us. Calm down and rest."</p>
<p>She could feel the crazy beating of his heart and how it was slowing. With his grip relaxing, she slowly began to lower him back down on his back, still talking kindly to him. To finish, she pressed her temple to the side of his head, hoping he'd feel her kindness, and then she slowly opened her eyes and observed him.</p>
<p>He was still breathing a bit too fast, like someone who'd just come off of a taxing run, but not dangerously so anymore. His entire body was sticky with sweat and he was clutching onto her blanket for security.</p>
<p>But he seemed to be aware of himself now, and of her; how he turned his face away, as if embarrassed, was rather curious and cute.</p>
<p>Amy then remembered her position and felt her cheeks heat up. Smiling, she backed up and stood, stepping off the bed.</p>
<p>She turned to Shadow and Sonic, "Uhm, I think we should talk about this-let him rest some."</p>
<p>Shadow spoke, "Someone should guard him to make sure he doesn't try to escape."</p>
<p>Amy couldn't hide a dubious frown, "Escape-how, where? Out my window to become a pancake on the sidewalk below? I seriously doubt he's thinking about escaping right now."</p>
<p>Shadow ran his eyes over the creature on the bed, then glanced to Amy, then turned for the door, "Fine."</p>
<p>They all took their leave of Amy's room, closing her door after. Amy's apartment featured a kitchen on the right upon entering, a living space, single restroom, and her room at the end. A Couch and coffee table had been positioned after her kitchen. Cozy. An open floor plan. Shadow liked it, but he kept the compliment in his mouth.</p>
<p>Amy and Sonic sat on her couch. Tails jumped up on the counter. Due to her preference, Rouge sat on the coffee table and crossed her legs. Shadow just stood near the bedroom door.</p>
<p>"We need to leave immediately," Rouge began. "Amy's house is just our go-between meetup. Now that we're all here with the chaos emeralds and that little hedgehog we stole, we need to go somewhere far more remote."</p>
<p>"Just what's going on?" Amy questioned.</p>
<p>Shadow sighed, "This isn't nearly the end of things. Amy, we stole from GUN-twice-and destroyed a lot of their property. Rouge and I-and now Sonic and Tails-are certainly wanted for our crimes. GUN will also be wanting their property back."</p>
<p>Amy opened her mouth a little in surprise.</p>
<p>"There's no fun in that. We're not gonna give them anything back!" Sonic picked up. "We're going to find the remaining five chaos emeralds and then we'll go to Angel Island and see why they've been acting up."</p>
<p>Rouge interjected, "Actually, our newcomer might know a little about that. Remember, his blood has chaos emerald powder in it. He's supposed to be GUN's magic medicine."</p>
<p>Amy's eyes bulged, "He-he makes chaos emerald powder?"</p>
<p>Then Sonic showed her the golden chaos emerald, "They cut it and infused the powder into him."</p>
<p>"It seems his body just produces it like it's no big deal, now," Rouge huffed.</p>
<p>Flabbergast at all these details, with her heart filling with sympathy for the minty hedgehog, Amy rose and couldn't help herself. She slid past Shadow into her room, closed the door, and locked it. What she was expecting, she had no idea-if anything. They'd only exited her room a few minutes ago, leaving the hedgehog there to sleep, but-</p>
<p>She involuntarily let out a little gasp, hands to her mouth.</p>
<p>The boy was sitting upright on her bed, hands pressed to his forehead, eyes shut tightly. As soon as he heard her, he popped his eyes open in a terrified way that made Amy's gut wrench. Reacting to her, he backed up on her bed until his back touched the wall.</p>
<p>Amy slowly put her arms down and examined the boy closer. He had four regular-sized spines and two thinner ones that separated from the two middle spines. Medium-brown eyes. He wore absolutely nothing, which she found a little peculiar. But, if he was truly from a laboratory, it sort of made sense.</p>
<p>She took a step forward, "Hi, I'm Amy Rose. Do you have a name?"</p>
<p>The boy slowly slid his arms around his legs, unblinking at her.</p>
<p>"Uh, I'm the one that calmed you down a few minutes ago. You, uh, were having a-" It was so distressful to say, she ended with a chuckle.</p>
<p>"Heart attack," he finished, in a soft, medium tenor flicker of a voice, and then a downcast sigh.</p>
<p>Amy hurried to the bed, forgetting that her presence might have been unsettling for him, "Why did you have a heart attack? You're pretty young, aren't you? Well, I mean-you look young. How old are you?"</p>
<p>He recoiled a bit again, his puzzled face taking on another reflection of fear as Shadow easily picked Amy's lock and entered.</p>
<p>"Amy," he clasped her arm so she'd stand up straight. "I want to talk to this hedgehog alone, please."</p>
<p>"Huh?" She stood upright, surprised at his sudden presence. "Oh-" First, she was upset, and then Amy understood something that softened her eyes and almost made Shadow feel like she could see into his subconsciousness in a way he couldn't. He was grateful she only nodded and left. The group was talking outside. Planning and whatever. That was less important. The creature before him was what mattered just then.</p>
<p>He crossed his arms, "What are you?"</p>
<p>The boy stared with confusion and some fear at Shadow.</p>
<p>His leg was wound and a thick strip of a bandage was stuck to his chest. Shadow narrowed his eye at them, some sort of angry rumble swirling in his chest. "What did those fools do to you?" He seethed softly.</p>
<p>That wasn't the right thing to do. The boy just seemed to retreat further.</p>
<p>They'd just ripped this child from a place he knew, however unpleasant it was. Shadow had no context to work with when it came to the specimen before him. He didn't know if it was truly sentient and intelligent and he didn't know what it had been put through.</p>
<p>Like him, when he'd first been born.</p>
<p>A knot tightened in his heart. That was why he'd become so angry at the sight of the bandages. If there was a million things he had no commonality with when it came to this boy, there was one thing-one searing, personal, vulnerable thing he'd worked years to suppress, to move past.</p>
<p>Now, he brought it all back with a simple, "I am Shadow from Project Shadow. GUN created me decades ago aboard the space colony ARK. I was designed and grown to become the most powerful creature on Earth. I am the ultimate life form. My purpose was to help save life. What is your purpose, that GUN would create another hedgehog?"</p>
<p>There was no braggadocio or pride in Shadow's tone. Everything was a strict statement of truth. </p>
<p>The boy didn't say anything at first. Perhaps he was mentally handicapped, after all. Perhaps GUN had purposefully designed him to perform only his essential function, retarded so he would offer no resistance.</p>
<p>"I-I was made to heal sick people," he softly responded.</p>
<p>So similar! Shadow dropped his arms to his sides. He had known that, per Rouge's reports; but hearing it struck him close to home.</p>
<p>And the boy spoke again, "I'm Dylan. Sh-Shadow? I-I've read about you before."</p>
<p>This boy Dylan wasn't retarded, after all. Shadow felt pleased and a bit sad. He kept himself externally composed, "You can heal other people because of your blood. I know it has chaos emerald powder in it."</p>
<p>"How did you-" Dylan stopped himself. </p>
<p>Amused, Shadow came fully up to the bed and extended his hand, "Get up."</p>
<p>"Why?"</p>
<p>It seemed that the boy was less and less fearful of him per every passing second. Shadow felt both displeased and strange about it.</p>
<p>"If you've read anything about me, then you know I'm not a person to repeat myself."</p>
<p>After a bit more hesitation, Dylan slowly slid across the bed and rose, with some difficulty, Shadow noticed. Just, how weak and frail was this hedgehog?</p>
<p>He grabbed Dylan and withdrew his red chaos emerald, pressing it into the surprised hedgehog's hands.</p>
<p>"Is this-a chaos emerald?" Dylan almost lost his words.</p>
<p>Good. Shadow didn't have to explain the gems to him. He kept his gloved hand on one half of the gem and Dylan clasped the other half with his naked hand. They were still, waiting. A little flicker of chaos emerald jumped out of the emerald, slithered back inside, split, and started to grow.</p>
<p>He keenly watched the emotions passing over Dylan's face, then the boy wincing from the chaos energy lashing out at him. Something began to sparkle, just a bit, then more and more. </p>
<p>Dylan gasped and tried to release the gem, but Shadow wrenched him quite harshly to keep him there.</p>
<p>"What's going on?" He questioned, looking to Shadow for answers.</p>
<p>He received no response. Sparkles of gold seemed to rise out of Dylan's body, completely covering him like stars in a galaxy. To Shadow's surprise, his red chaos emerald burst with light and then it seemed to sigh in relief, as the jagged rage inside of it simmered down. Didn't completely disappear, but-was subdued, at least for a time. And Dylan's hands were filled almost completely with golden chaos powder. </p>
<p>This was a completely new, foreign ability Shadow had never seen from anything thus far in his life. The child was a conduit for chaos energy, because his body created it. The emeralds responded to him. That was also similar to him, in a degree, but Shadow couldn't create chaos energy. He could only channel the chaos energy manifested in the world around him. Also, it didn't seem like Dylan could use the chaos energy he created how Shadow could, to control it and distort it into a weapon.</p>
<p>"What's happening to me?" He breathed, turning his hands about. When he released his grip on the jewel, the golden sparkling faded until it was no more. Dylan and Shadow still stood, both thinking differently on the matter.</p>
<p>He returned the chaos emerald into his quills, "Do you really know nothing about your birth?"</p>
<p>An immediate pain passed over Dylan's face. "Not really."</p>
<p>He was lying.</p>
<p>"Do you not understand that you have the ability to suppress the violence that's risen up in the chaos emeralds?"</p>
<p>By the look on Dylan's face, Shadow knew the boy had no idea about anything. Hiding frustration, he tersely explained, "Your creators cut into a chaos emerald and put that emerald's powder inside of you. Now the chaos emeralds are acting strangely. We took you out of that lab to find out what was going on. To settle this problem, we need to find the other five chaos emeralds."</p>
<p>After two seconds, Dylan sighed, "I'm sorry."</p>
<p>"This is not your fault. However, you're coming with us."</p>
<p>A gasp, "Wh-what?"</p>
<p>"Come."</p>
<p>"Wait!"</p>
<p>When Shadow decided on a matter, that was how it was. He yanked Dylan behind him and then gave him a slight push out of Amy's room. Dylan stumbled a little, but as Sonic was standing quite nearby, he grabbed him to prevent his fall. The sudden silence was engulfing, to say the least.</p>
<p>Rouge shattered it with a happy, "Oh, he's cuter than I thought. I'm thinking, black gloves. Fingerless perhaps? And black shoes of some type."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. At Seaside Village</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Just destruction. Destruction of the lab. Destruction of their project. Destruction of her last fragment of promise to her husband, to herself. The screeching, hissing, whipping cords and rent metal were an accurate reflection of how Isolena felt: slipping further down into the madness of her mind. Sparks drifted down before her. Utter useless, worthless, disgusting failure.</p>
<p>Her eyes narrowed at the hole that remained of her second lab. She turned away one last time, vowing never to enter such a place again. Steps even, Isolena thought and seethed and pressed her lips tight. She had no office left, either.</p>
<p>Years of her other secondary pursuits in various scientific interests were gone. A decade of her life wasted. A husband and son dead.</p>
<p>She silently walked through burnt, mangled, destroyed corridor after corridor, white lab coat swooshing softly behind her. No one spoke to her. Few people dared meet her gaze. Her three colleagues stood to the side as she passed. Not even they uttered a word, though Mr. Cray's eyes were overly wet and his strained face somehow offended her.</p>
<p>She would be required to oversee the picking apart of the fragments of the laboratory, fragments of a dead project. And GUN would want a thick report from her-not to mention more information from her about Project Miracle. This was the second time the project had been sabotaged, or so it seemed from the outside looking in. GUN would no doubt be asking just what was so special about Project Miracle that first her husband and now someone else had all but succeeded in devastating it?</p>
<p>Slightly looking to her right, Isolena stopped at the entry to the building complex and thought for some seconds. She wasn't about to tell GUN what she'd really done. It was none of their business, and they hadn't been funding the latter stages of the project, either. If she divulged any of the information, they certainly would close her down and shut her out of everything. Maybe put her on trial for a variety of crimes, including murder. She'd be more than publicly disgraced. She'd be forgotten, rotting in some jail somewhere.</p>
<p>That would not happen, and not because she personally had no enthusiasm at the idea of dying behind bars. She simply wasn't finished. Project Miracle wasn't over. Not until she decided it was.</p>
<p>There was nothing left now but to seek out her property and make sure it and everyone else who had dared to destroy her project felt her wrath.</p>
<p>Here, with GUN, that wasn't going to happen.</p>
<p>Isolena stepped slowly out of the building and turned for the parking lot. It was another sunny, lovely day, but she didn't care for quaint, blue skies, either. She was quiet, then closing her door in her car, locking it, driving away. GUN had sensors and monitors and could hear and see everything. Therefore, she drove until she was miles and miles away, parking in an empty lot before a hollow outline of what used to be some kind of large building.</p>
<p>Nothing here now. No one.</p>
<p>Isolena stepped out, hand on her hips and gazed back at the skyscrapers of Central City. </p>
<p>She pulled her phone out and scrolled to a recent call, and punched to redial. The receiver picked up and she spoke, "Eggman, I do apologize for calling so late, but I'd like to discuss your proposition now. Things have changed at GUN concerning Project Miracle. The specimen has been taken and my lab destroyed again. I have the only copy of all the project data."</p>
<p>Eggman almost outright purred with satisfaction, "Well, this is news! I am quite upset with you, Ms. Marshall, but as you've finally realized how helpful I can be for you, I'll let your previous rudeness slide. But, don't ignore me again! You will absolutely regret it. Now, just what are you proposing?"</p>
<p>She sounded bored, "I want my specimen back, but I also want to continue my research. We had a clinical trial in progress that will be finished in a couple days. I think I should continue the pretense of working with GUN to see how the trial finishes. But I know they'll be seeking details from me very soon about what's really going on."</p>
<p>"And you can't give them any of that," he understood. "So, are you needing me to come fetch you before things get too hot for you-is that it?"</p>
<p>"Yes," she softly responded. "I think I should be able to continue my work with you, Doctor. Really, it doesn't matter to me what you might be up to; just as long as I get to succeed with Project Miracle and by getting back what's mine."</p>
<p>"Ah, it sounds like you're very determined. Good," Eggman chuckled with delight. "Very well! I will provide you space! But I want something from our partnership, Ms. Marshall."</p>
<p>"What?" She walked slowly back and forth. "Chaos emerald blood isn't good enough for you?"</p>
<p>Eggman cackled, "I want the chaos emeralds! Oh, don't pretend you know nothing about them! Your little stunt cutting into that golden emerald sent that earthquake everywhere! You've caused a rift in chaos energy."</p>
<p>"Why? If they're actually unstable, as you say, how could you use them?"</p>
<p>He let a pause rise in the air before adopting a little snarl to his tone, "Don't underestimate me, Ms. Marshall! Just get them for me and I'll ensure you'll have all the supplies, funding, and space you need for your work. And you better do it quick-before GUN starts stepping on your secrets!"</p>
<p>He hung up. Isolena stared at the phone, anger bubbling up. Did he think she had endless access to all things GUN? That she had even been aware or cared if GUN had been tracking chaos emeralds? How was she possibly supposed to know if GUN knew the location of any of them; and then how to get her fingers on that info, and then to, somehow, get the emeralds? That was something specialized agents were supposed to handle. Not her-a scientist!</p>
<p>Her phone rumbled. A new message-from Eggman?</p>
<p>Curious, she tapped it to open. He'd written two simple words: Fortress Island.</p>
<p>She grit in a half whisper, "If he's onto the locations of chaos emeralds, why doesn't that fat fool get them himself? With his entire Egg Fleet and badnik army? Everyone knows about his E-Series, Fighter, and Launcher classes, and an exhausting additional list from Egg Bombers to Egg Walkers. He could easily do it himself, so-"</p>
<p>Isolena realized how outrageous Eggman was then. He was enjoying her trouble, wanted to use her as a guinea pig because it was fun and convenient and would prove if she was loyal to him or not. Scowling, Isolena slid into her car and wrenched the wheel, turning out for the freeway.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>Faces. Some of these mobians he recognized from them when they'd utterly ripped the lab apart and snatched him out, but, ultimately, he didn't know these people. Them standing before and around him was continually so intimidating, that he swallowed and consciously tried to keep himself calm and his breathing stable. Especially after that display in the bedroom, the burning rush of blood to his head and overpowering hotness in his chest-he couldn't let anyone see that again. </p>
<p>It was all so confusing. All their eyes: accusatory, curious, bewildered. One even looked at him kindly.</p>
<p>Dylan dropped his head in his hands, elbows propped on his knees, and closed his eyes. Just, shut down. He just wanted to escape this insanity! Why was he here? What did they want? Probably something from him-some sort of explanation. </p>
<p>He wouldn't-couldn't give them anything. He didn't want to. The black hedgehog Shadow had horribly intense, cold eyes. The white bat contained incredulity and even amusement when she fluttered her lashes at him. Then there was the pink girl. She'd saved him, in a way. Of course, he recalled how warm her body had felt, how soft her supplicating voice had been. Her, he was the most embarrassed to look at, and so he kept his face down.</p>
<p>There was also a yellow-colored fox who seemed to be younger than the others. His blue eyes were kind and curious, with no ulterior motive-at least not from the brief study Dylan had allowed himself to give of the boy. </p>
<p>And then there was the last one: the blue hedgehog who'd caught him when Shadow had pushed him out of the girl's room. That one had been the worst, for Dylan actually knew the most about that particular mobian. Not that his casual reading of Sonic had given him any special insight. Just, that speedster was talked of the most about town, about any place. He had numerous titles of affection: blue blur, the world's fastest thing alive, hero. </p>
<p>Intimidating. Dylan couldn't believe he was sitting near that hedgehog. How-why did they take him? The previous day, he'd only seen Sonic once or twice. He'd never presumed to be near the teenager again. Now Sonic was literally a few steps away, also raising a brow at him.</p>
<p>Rouge gave off a sigh, "We need to go, everyone. The boy's not going to unzip his mouth right now. He's probably too confused and scared to do that yet. But we can't stay."</p>
<p>"Uhm-okay. Everyone's riding with me, right?" Tails cautiously asked.</p>
<p>"Can the Tornado take it?" Rouge queried.</p>
<p>"Sure!"</p>
<p>"Great! Then gather up that peppermint on the couch and let's go! Some of us can ride on the wings."</p>
<p>"Oh! I need to get my chao, first!" Amy hopped up from the couch with a little gasp. She hurried over to the kitchenette where a brown basket was pushed against the far corner, out of the harsh sun. A soft, lavender blanket had been folded and lain within. There was a pale blue creature laying inside, slowly breathing.</p>
<p>Amy slowed and carefully picked up the basket, trying not to rock it lest the baby wake. When she returned, standing just two steps to Dylan's right, the chao purred in its sleep.</p>
<p>Dylan's ears flickered. Curious, he couldn't resist looking up and directly at the basket. Any chao was interesting to him, thinking of his affections for the innocent creatures. Rather revealing, he rose and turned for the basket, gazing with eyes widening at the tender, slumbering chao.</p>
<p>Everyone stopped to watch this new scene play out, abruptly surprised.</p>
<p>"Do you like chao?" Amy asked, just a bit flustered at how the hedgehog had been so closed off, and was now on his feet, right in front of her.</p>
<p>"Yes," he couldn't help responding. </p>
<p>She smiled, "I haven't had him long. His name is Berry."</p>
<p>That's why his entire body had tingled from hearing one little coo from the chao. There'd been no mistaking the sound. To the unfamiliar ear, one chao gurgle was the same as any other. But like with anyone who owned a creature, be it a common cat or a dog, they knew the distinct sound of their loved one. </p>
<p>Dylan's fingers tingled and he looked from the chao he loved so fully to Amy. Jameson had said he'd given Berry to a pretty pink girl. This must have been her. She'd done him so much good in such little time: first calming him down and now taking care of his chao.</p>
<p>She brought the basket up a little closer to him, "Do you want to pet him?"</p>
<p>Yes-yes, he did. He wanted to tell Berry who he was and hold his friend for hours. He wanted to apologize for being gone and then explain to Berry why he was a hedgehog now. They'd catch up on snuggles and baking and going to the beach and-</p>
<p>Dylan stood before her-before everyone who was keenly watching him-and he said nothing. His eyes spoke for him, of love and sadness that gave him no way to hide his affections. Some tears formed and a few dropped down his face.</p>
<p>How was it that, from the hell his life had become, from what he'd had to survive through in such a short amount of time, he'd ended up at this one place in the entire planet where his Berry was? He didn't believe in fate or coincidences. Everything happened for a reason, thus making the moment more unbelievable for her.</p>
<p>Did that mean where he was, what he had become, also had a reason?</p>
<p>It was hard for him to even give a second to pondering that question. He didn't want to.</p>
<p>Amy let out a little giggle. Berry was waking up. The sparkling eyes peered up at her and the chao slowly stood, reaching out for her. </p>
<p>"Aw, Berry! I love you!" She put the basket down and plucked him from it, snuggling him to her cheek.</p>
<p>Dylan wiped his face. The little chao heard him and turned his face around, tilting his head in puzzlement.</p>
<p>"Berry, this is Dylan. He's our new friend! You'll be seeing a lot of him from now on, so be nice to him, please."</p>
<p>The last straw for Dylan was how Berry smiled and extended his chubby arms to him. Dylan began to reach out, then he forced his hand down and abruptly turned his face away. The silence was suffocating and confusing.</p>
<p>Shadow thought about what he'd just seen and he felt something was very off about their new acquaintance. The boy didn't act like he had when he'd first awoken: not knowing anything, uncomprehending, having to learn even the most rudimentary things all new. Though the boy didn't seem very strong, he had enough motor skill to infer at least previous familiarity with movement. Not to mention the way he'd cried seeing such a worthless creature really aroused his suspicions.</p>
<p>Then-wait-he recalled suddenly what Dylan had said: he'd read about him before. How could a lab creature have read about him before, if he'd just been brought into conscious life? How could something new know how to read or speak?</p>
<p>He took a single step forward, but stopped. This wasn't the time to confront Dylan about his possible verbal mistake. Everyone was heading for the door.</p>
<p>"Get Dylan and let's go!" Rouge waved at him.</p>
<p>What-that kid was his responsibility? Well, whatever.</p>
<p>"Let's go," he grabbed Dylan's arm and pulled him out after him.</p>
<p>"Where are we going?" Dylan gasped.</p>
<p>"Be quiet."</p>
<p>The biting words succeeded. Dylan followed Shadow because he had to, because the black hedgehog's grip on his wrist was unbreakable. Having to stumble and hurry along the silent halls, up flight after flight quickly taxed him. He worried about making a mistake, falling, showing how weak he was, but hadn't they already noticed? What worse things could happen now?</p>
<p>"This is too slow," Shadow smoothly remarked. "Can't you go faster?"</p>
<p>"I-"</p>
<p>He had no time to respond. Shadow's shoes burst with orange flame and Dylan gasped as they both shot up the stairs past the slower members. A blue blur hurried up beside them. The acceleration, the terror Dylan experienced, practically being dragged along, excited him so much that he forgot to breathe. It last all of a couple seconds when they popped out on the roof and were still, but he dropped to his knees, eyes wide.</p>
<p>"What, is he not used to going fast?" Sonic asked with genuine confusion. "He's a hedgehog. It's natural."</p>
<p>Shadow logically remarked, "If he's only been alive for a few days, it makes sense he doesn't know how to run fast."</p>
<p>"Oh, yeah," Sonic gave a sheepish smile.</p>
<p>Everyone else arrived and proceeded to run past them and jump in or up on the wings of the Tornado. Likewise, Shadow grabbed Dylan again and sprang up to the side of the plane. With a rare few seconds of consideration, he slowly released his burden into the back seat of the airplane where Amy grabbed him to help him in. Watching her take care of the boy, Shadow sat down to Dylan's right on the wing and tossed his eyes over the city.</p>
<p>Someone's hands were there-that pink hedgehog. She buckled him in and snuggled in close. Berry was in her lap, wide awake.</p>
<p>Tails adjusted his straps and settled in behind the controls, "Everyone ready?"</p>
<p>Sonic slapped a hand on the wing, "Go, already, Tails! I'm starving!"</p>
<p>"Chili dogs for dinner when we arrive, I take it?" Rouge chuckled. "Very healthy."</p>
<p>Sonic stuck his nose up, "You didn't take me out for those chili dogs you promised!"</p>
<p>"Oh, that's right," she lengthened the words flirtatiously and gave Sonic an air kiss.</p>
<p>Amy scowled fiercely at Rouge, but the bat just laughed at her.</p>
<p>Dylan suddenly gasped in fear, "The fox is driving? Isn't he a child?"</p>
<p>His outburst was so uncharacteristic of everything they'd seen of him in their short time, but still-almost hilarious, and Tails flung his hands up and nearly scowled.</p>
<p>"What, and how old are you, baby?" Rouge was fishing for information again.</p>
<p>Sonic chuckled, "Dylan, Tails is the best pilot out of us all! I'm pretty good, too, but nothing impressive if you compare us two. He even beats Rouge, and she's top-notch. Who do you think built this plane?"</p>
<p>Bewildered, Dylan looked right at Shadow, who still had a forced, avoidant gaze out at the city, then right at Sonic, then beside him at Amy.</p>
<p>"Relax, Dylan," Amy advised. "We'll be flying for a while. Tails is very responsible!"</p>
<p>"No more talk," Shadow interrupted. "I don't see any GUN surveillance craft, but that doesn't mean they're not out there."</p>
<p>The plane jerked and roared to life and, to Dylan's fright, sped forth and accelerated at a rate he'd never experienced before on a flight. He'd been on his fair share, of course within the belly, nicely enclosed and away from the raw elements. This was nothing he could have prepared himself for. He just sat, silent, hands gripping the edge of the seat, and waited for doom.</p>
<p>The red plane dipped just a slight as its wheels left the roof top, then sped up for the clouds. In less than a minute, it leveled out and Tails punched on the speed.</p>
<p>Tentatively, Dylan look to his right. Shadow's eyes were closed. He looked to the left at Sonic. The blue hedgehog was standing, then he slid forth, grabbing the edge of the wing, and tossed his legs over the side, staring in glee downward at the ground. He let out a whistle and a laugh, which Tails responded with a thumbs up. </p>
<p>Rouge was sitting behind them atop the lower area of the plane and she slid up and pulled on one of Dylan's spines.</p>
<p>Dylan gasped, jumping and spinning back.</p>
<p>"Dylan, honey, why are you so uptight? Just relax! You have no idea, but this is the smooth part of our adventure. Just give it a few days, and you'll miss how nice this feels!"</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>It felt like many hours later that the Tornado began to slow and descend. Dylan had found the courage to look around a bit more, before settling back in silent fear. Then, that feeling had slowly faded. The cool breezes did feel so very refreshing and he was so happy, he realized, to be out of that laboratory. Away from his mother's ice eyes.</p>
<p>Everyone settled into their own thing and most of the time were quiet. Sonic was the most energetic one, moving all around the exterior of the plane without the slightest worry of falling. He jumped from the wing next to the cockpit at one time,  laughing with Tails like nothing at all was going on. Then he visited Shadow and then he spent a little bit of time with Rouge. Though the chatter was indistinct gibberish, thanks to the wind and the blades from the plane, Sonic let out a gasp and Rouge burst into laughter at some point. She'd smeared her pink lipstick right from the stick across Sonic's cheek. But she'd cleaned it off, and when he put his hand out, playfully smacked it. </p>
<p>Sonic carried on. Before he returned to his daydreaming on the left wing, he popped in right in front of Dylan and Amy, standing before them in the small space and bumping his and Amy's legs like it was no big deal.</p>
<p>It didn't seem to be. Amy smiled in a girlish manner. Dylan slowly observed them, actually feeling interested and curious. Sonic leaned in more than once to whisper something in her ear and she giggled. Then she'd push him softly and turn aside, hiding her eyes for a second. The blue hedgehog seemed charmed by such mannerisms. He asked something about her concussion? </p>
<p>Then-he was addressing Dylan, "Hey, I did want to ask you, can you really heal people?"</p>
<p>So sudden, so awkward, Dylan froze. He thought of what he'd heard the scientists talking about. It seemed to be true, so he slowly nodded.</p>
<p>"That's really neat! How can you do that? Is it your blood? I heard it has chaos emerald powder in it."</p>
<p>"Yes-it does," he swallowed, for some reason feeling like a freakish monster. "If my blood is injected into someone else, like through a needle, they should be healed."</p>
<p>"That is so cool! I can see why GUN wanted to keep you."</p>
<p>Maybe that was meant to be funny, but it made Dylan feel all over again like a possession and he could only smile a little bit. A sensation burned on his right. He slowly looked over to see Shadow, sitting on the wing, legs and arms crossed, staring openly at him in some paradoxical manner. Though their irises met, he didn't look away. He just kept staring at Dylan.</p>
<p>It was so unnerving that Dylan ripped his eyes away. Sonic jumped back to the left wing and dangled his legs over the side, arms on the metal, leaning back. His eyes rose to the clouds and soon he was on his back, hands behind his head, daydreaming.</p>
<p>Dylan watched Berry play with Amy and he grew slowly tired, then closed his eyes. The next time he opened them, it was from a lurch of the Tornado touching down on a long, narrow asphalt strip. There was a giggle to his left. He focused, gasping and sitting upright. He'd been leaning against Amy's shoulder! </p>
<p>"It's fine, Dylan. You looked so tired, so I didn't wake you."</p>
<p>"Was I-did I-"</p>
<p>"For a couple hours."</p>
<p>He sighed.</p>
<p>Sonic sprang off the wing before the plane fully stopped. Shadow was also quick on his feet, grabbing Dylan without any sort of permission.</p>
<p>"Where are we?" Dylan gasped after him.</p>
<p>"Seaside Village. Technically, a few minutes from the village." Abruptly, he halted and turned right to Dylan, "I'll make this plain: we took you and a golden chaos emerald from GUN to stop Project Miracle. Cutting into a chaos emerald is stupidly foolish. And that you were grown there and infused with that chaos energy is extremely foolish, too. So, you're going to stay with us and you're going to help us figure out why all seven chaos emeralds have become unstable."</p>
<p>Had he just stepped from one prison into another?</p>
<p>Dylan's heart was starting to do that annoying thing where it beat faster. He tried to control how newly afraid and sad he felt. The mobians around him seemed very nice-except this one. Why did Shadow seem to dislike him so much? He hadn't done anything to him! Then again, he hadn't done anything to his mother, except have the blood she needed, and all the hate she felt for a hundred different people had all focused on him.</p>
<p>He was confused though, "The chaos emeralds? I-I don't know anything much about those. You already talked to me about them. Why would cutting into one make them all unstable? What does that even mean?"</p>
<p>Shadow scowled and yanked him along, so that he was forced to follow everyone to a circular beach house. Well, it was more of a bamboo hut with a straw thatch roof. A large barn-type structure stood next to it, full of all sorts of tools and mechanical things. He didn't get but passing seconds to see any of it, being pulled along inside the house.</p>
<p>Shadow pushed him down atop a three-cushion couch, himself crossing his arms and standing just to Dylan's right, like he had to ensure the hedgehog didn't dare move.</p>
<p>He felt something. Turning to his left, it was that white bat! She had a hand on his knee. Dylan felt his face heating up.</p>
<p>The woman chuckled and leaned in a little, "Don't mind Shadow. Old people are often a bit cranky. He really does seem to like you, though. It took me months for him to pull me along like that. You're so privileged!"</p>
<p>Dylan didn't want to be privileged, if that's what being treated like that meant.</p>
<p>The bat yet leaned in just a little more, savoring his retracting away, "Dylan, doll, I'll fill you in on what's going on in a softer way. What do you know about the chaos emeralds?"</p>
<p>"Uh-that-that they're mysterious gems that uh-Sonic and Shadow have used more than once to stop Eggman. They-they can go-super is it called? I read about it in a magazine some time ago."</p>
<p>Shadow visibly flinched and then narrowed his eyes and Dylan noticed.</p>
<p>"Is that all?" Rouge leaned back to get comfortable. "I'm surprised! Well, it makes sense you don't know, since you're a baby."</p>
<p>She meant it in the lab growth way and Dylan hid a feeling of dismay.</p>
<p>"Okay, honey, when those scientists cut into the chaos emerald, there was a big earthquake. Now no one can seem to use them. Even Shadow, who can use chaos energy as easily as we all breathe, has trouble, now. This is a big problem. Since chaos emeralds are such delicate, volatile specimens, we need to figure out how to fix the chaos emerald that was cut."</p>
<p>Sonic pulled a glittering gold thing out of a bag laying nearby and brought it over right before Dylan, extending it to their surprised guest.</p>
<p>"See this cut?" He placed his finger next to the long, thin groove on the gem.</p>
<p>Dylan couldn't believe his eyes. It was just like the red gem Shadow had! Unreal, heavenly. As Sonic tilted the gem, rays of light bounced off the walls all around them.</p>
<p>Tentatively, Dylan reached forth and touched the cold stone with a single finger. It was smooth, also like the red emerald Shadow possessed. He slid all his fingers over it and then, with an inhale, he found that Sonic had pressed the entire gem into his hands. Immediately, the emerald starting sparkling, gold light rising, jumping in ethereal golden streaks. Dylan's mind blanked a split second. Like before, his hands started to sparkle the same color as the rock. He could feel it. There was rage-no. More like shock, pain. The emerald pulsed and he knew it had been harmed and that it was lashing out in response to defend itself from further pain. In some strange way, he understood, clutching it ever, slowly tighter. Heat ran up his arms. The rest of his body shivered and began to light up, like golden stars appearing in a dusk sky. </p>
<p>All was quiet as this was happening. Dylan had a sense that everyone had come near, were observing with bated breath. His eyes wouldn't move, wouldn't raise to see. The chaos emerald was entirely his world.  The cut was horrible. With interest and sympathy, he ran his finger over it.</p>
<p>Then he grimaced, gasping. Horrible, hot pain ripped through his body. The emerald burst with so much gold, that everyone had to turn away, even he. It was like the sun had exploded in the beach hut. Even then, he wasn't able to release the gem and began to panic.</p>
<p>A blur of black and red snatched it from his hands and wrapped it back inside the cloth bag.</p>
<p>Was that what they'd meant? That was in his blood? Part of him?</p>
<p>His hands were trembling, partly from pain and partly from grappling with the new, strange ability. This had been different than when Shadow had forced his red chaos emerald into his hands. He'd felt a similar anguish from that stone, but this one held a stronger connection to him. So when his body lit up gold all over, a second time, it also felt different to him. It was overwhelming and he was frightened when he finally brought his eyes up to see that everyone was staring at him.</p>
<p>Exhaling, Dylan rose and ran out of the hut. His feet hit the sand and he stumbled, but recovered, not caring how taxed he was making himself. He didn't run far, but it was far enough: into the nearby clusters of palm trees and thick brush. There, he fell, grabbing fistfuls of sand. Heaving, he cried.</p>
<p>But not long did he have to himself. Just a minute after, someone was there, dropping a hand on his back, then pulling him up. He was engulfed in a hug before he knew who it was. He let out a little sound of surprise, but the gesture of friendship only tightened.</p>
<p>"Man, you must have gone through some rough stuff," came a chuckle that sounded uncertain. "But it's okay. You're with us now. We'll all get through this together!"</p>
<p>Dylan didn't know what kind of person Sonic was, besides having the reputation of being just and good and a hero. Whatever that really meant. No article or TV broadcast or discussion from a panel of guests on the radio could ever capture what he-or anyone else-was like. This, though, he would never have thought for Sonic's character.</p>
<p>For a second, he was incredibly embarrassed. And then he didn't care at all and he leaned into Sonic's arms, heaving and crying shamelessly.</p>
<p>He would let himself indulge in this moment of private tears. Sonic was patting his back, giving him time, understanding-though that hedgehog couldn't possibly understand! That was okay, though. He didn't necessarily want Sonic to understand. No one should, yet. He wasn't ready, and that was why he'd been trying to share as little as possible.</p>
<p>Everything was so raw. He'd just been a human and now he was not. He'd just had parents, and then he'd lost one and, effectively, been abandoned by the other. He'd had freedom to go and do mostly what he wished, within reason. Now, he didn't. Whether laying on a mattress in a lab or being here, he couldn't just go do what he pleased. Was this better?</p>
<p>It was as if the blue hedgehog could read his mind. "Everything's going to be fine. We just need your help and-well, we couldn't leave you trapped in that cage, could we? After all this is over, I promise we'll be done. You'll be able to go do whatever you want. No one will be hunting you!"</p>
<p>"How can you promise that? You-you don't know what it's been like for me," Dylan blurted, releasing Sonic to wipe his eyes. "I don't even know you!"</p>
<p>"You're right. I don't get just what your situation is, but I have a hint. I've been through some hard core stuff too, so I can try to understand if you'll let me-us-in."</p>
<p>"No-not yet," Dylan admitted. "This has been overwhelming for me."</p>
<p>The two stood facing each other, quiet. A warm wind blew past, causing Dylan to involuntarily turn to where it had raced away. His eyes searched around him, then up at the magnificent, endless blue ocean of sky. He thought of Jameson and sincerely wished the man well. He'd been the only person during his short, brutal stay in that laboratory that had cared for him.</p>
<p>Pangs of something hurt in his chest. All around him was the simplistic beauty that he'd yearned for: long stretches of beach, sparkling, tan sand. Peace. There was nothing else in any direction as far as people went. Just that bamboo hut and the small group of new acquaintances that had been thrust upon him.</p>
<p>But they weren't so bad. Not even the so-termed ultimate life form, Shadow.</p>
<p>This moment was a treasure. For all his life, he never thought or even hoped he'd ever be able to talk to anyone like these people-like Sonic.</p>
<p>As intimidated as he was, he addressed the teenager, "Thank you for coming after me. I'll tell you things about me, but I can't right now. Just, give me time, please."</p>
<p>"No problem!" Such a nonchalant, giving attitude.</p>
<p>Dylan slid some thoughts around and sighed, "Sonic?"</p>
<p>"Yeah?"</p>
<p>"Are you ever afraid of things-things you don't understand?"</p>
<p>Caught off guard, Sonic's smile dropped. Like as Dylan was doing, he turned to watch the frothing waves run up over the sand and fall back. With some seconds of silence, he slightly nodded, "Yes. There's been a few times. Things always worked out, but when you're stuck in the moment, it feels pretty scary."</p>
<p>"Can I ask what one of them was?"</p>
<p>That seemed to make the universally-known and adored speedster uncomfortable. Dylan understood very well and felt a bit guilty that he'd asked. With every word Sonic spoke, though, the hero became less of an awe-inspiring celebrity and more of a flesh-and-blood person just like him. He was like anyone else: imperfect, hiding things, afraid to pull back facets of himself for others to see.</p>
<p>Sonic gave a smirk, "Did the continents breaking up impact you?"</p>
<p>"Yes. I remember clearly when that happened."</p>
<p>"And when Eggman blew up half the moon?"</p>
<p>"Yeah-I do. We're reminded of that every time the moon's up."</p>
<p>"Yeah, those were a couple times. There were a few others, like a big fight I had with Eggman's robot Metal Sonic. At times, I didn't know if I could make it, but I always did! Eggman managed to roboticize me before, too. That was really the experience!"</p>
<p>Such determination, and another trademark smirk at Dylan.</p>
<p>Ever optimistic, he grabbed Dylan's hand, "You have to do the same thing: don't doubt yourself and worry about the moment. It's the big picture you have to keep in sight. We'll find the chaos emeralds and fix all this! You're the connection, Dylan. Trust us and trust yourself!"</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>The drama seemed to be over, to Shadow's relief. Sonic and that new hedgehog were absent for the moment. Things became rather quiet, in relative comparison. Tails and Rouge were sitting side-by-side, once more tinkering with tablets and doing research. He'd assist them soon enough. For the moment, a certain pink-haired girl was his focus of secret concern.</p>
<p>She was sitting on the steps at the side of the hut that faced the ocean, bobbing that chao baby in her lap.</p>
<p>"How's your head feel?" He slid down to her left, propping one leg up to drape his arm on.</p>
<p>"Oh! You startled me, Shadow. The way you glide around," she sighed with a little smile. "I feel alright now. My concussion's probably healed up a lot already, but I know what you're going to say! I'll be extra careful for a few more days."</p>
<p>Shadow blinked at the blobby creature she was babying and hid a wash of annoyance at it, "I want you to stay here with Dylan for the next couple days. Sonic and I will probably be going out some distance to check things out."</p>
<p>"I see," her tone was even.</p>
<p>He continued, "I'm convinced that hedgehog is hiding something he should be telling us right now. Also, he doesn't seem very strong. I want him to build some muscle or he'll be a hindrance to all of us later."</p>
<p>Amy kissed the chao and looked at the endless sand, "You have sympathy for him. It was like that for you, wasn't it? Being physically weak. Being confused and scared."</p>
<p>Shadow dropped his leg and felt angry over her words, because she was right. Weakness and vulnerability. Those types of things he'd had to work on when his life had begun. He'd had no choice, regardless of how perplexed and frightened he'd been. At the dawn of his days, he hadn't known what he was or what he could do. None of the scientists had told him, either, for their own safety. Not like he'd have been able to properly channel chaos energy so early in his days, if they'd explained it to him.</p>
<p>In those dawning days, his brain had still been in infant stages of grasping anything. Standing, focusing, walking had been torturous for his body then, a body that hadn't had to support itself.</p>
<p>They'd pressed him and tested him in all sorts of painful ways that had made him cry out for mercy. What even was that? None of them had cared. The project. The weapon. That's what he'd been. The frightening thing many of them cowered before no matter how hard they'd tried to hide their dread at having to see him daily.</p>
<p>He hadn't known why. After Shadow had mastered his basic bodily functions and coordination, they'd blasted him with physical test after test. Yet, he'd done them because he'd not known any better. Not explaining anything had been to their advantage.</p>
<p>That sickening loneliness was what he'd especially feared back then. Physical pain had just been one aspect of it. No one had needed to explain to him what loneliness was; what feeling like an object over a person had been like. The avoiding eyes; the trembling they'd displayed.</p>
<p>He'd realized quite some time ago that even Gerald had used Maria as a tool of sorts to keep him in submission: every test he did was to help her. If he didn't cooperate, she may die faster, and he'd lose her. Such manipulation! At least Maria hadn't been aware of how they'd twisted his fears.</p>
<p>Thinking of it still made hot anger drop in Shadow's stomach almost to the point of nausea. That's what he'd felt when he'd seen Dylan: pity, understanding, discomfort, a partial reflection of himself. </p>
<p>He didn't like it, for that pale green hedgehog made his skin crawl and made him wonder, all over again, if he'd barely grown at all. If he was still just a creation. At the same time, he had wanted to save Dylan from all that.</p>
<p>Save him. Only he knew what it was like to be exploited and pricked with an endless number of needles and talked of right in front of him as if he wasn't there.</p>
<p>Shadow clenched his fists.</p>
<p>"Shadow, he's not exactly the same as you," Amy squeezed his tight fist.</p>
<p>Was that what he'd done? Channel his grievances into that hedgehog? Shadow released his fists and looked at her. Such a smile. Lovely, forest-green eyes. He leaned in a little.</p>
<p>Amy grasped his arm, planting a kiss on his cheek, then rubbing her head against his face. Absolutely stunned, Shadow sat still, silent, unable to look at her, let alone ask the girl what on earth she'd just done to him.</p>
<p>So much for instilling any sense of fear or dread in her ever again. No matter what he did from then on out, Shadow knew Amy would never be intimidated by him again. She probably hadn't been, truly, for some time. He both enjoyed the idea and feared it.</p>
<p>She then whispered, "Please don't go back to those lost days, Shadow. You're with me now."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. A Day of Calm</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The last sample of red and golden blood slid through the tube into the patient's arm. Machines set near the bed beeped steadily. The person laying there looked far healthier than they had in months, proving the worth of the chaos-infused blood. There was no doubt that their specimen's blood had succeeded. Project Miracle was a success.</p>
<p>"This is the last dose," Isolena reminded an accompanying nurse. "I'll inform GUN. Keep me posted on the patient's recovery. They should continue to recover until all of the leukemia has been destroyed. And, send me the numbers daily about his white blood cell count."</p>
<p>The nurse merely nodded, writing down notes and instructions from the scientist. Like with others, the woman seemed intimidated by Isolena.</p>
<p>She didn't care.</p>
<p>Once more visually examining the sleeping man on the bed, she supplied a stiff nod to the nurse and stepped out of the room. Check off that box. Not like the blood wouldn't have worked right. For the rest of that man's fortunate but most likely useless life, his body would benefit from that life-saving blood.</p>
<p>Her husband had died to save others. Let the world judge her as they saw fit. She regretted nothing.</p>
<p>All the way out of the hospital and to her car, Isolena didn't acknowledge anyone. Once inside, she pulled out her phone and saw a missed message. It was from the Commander. That was sooner than she thought.</p>
<p>Agitated, she plugged her phone to charge and punched to dial him back.</p>
<p>A secretary answered, "Commander Tower's office."</p>
<p>"Transfer me to the Commander," she didn't bother to identify herself. They all knew her.</p>
<p>"One moment."</p>
<p>Silence. At least the man didn't bother his callers with sappy elevator jingles. Then, a sound, a click, and a rather unforgiving, gruff voice, "Director Marshall, I'd like an update on just what is going on over on that side of GUN. I'd like it now. Come to my office immediately."</p>
<p>She was too angry at the summoning to feel intimidated, "Understood."</p>
<p>He hung up.</p>
<p>Fire burst in Isolena's brain. Thinking quickly about how to spin this to work for her goal, she pulled out into traffic to head for Tower's headquarters. This was far sooner than she'd anticipated he'd require information from her. There was supposed to be some days-at least-days she had intended to use to pry into GUN's database for the locations of the chaos emeralds for Eggman.</p>
<p>If she didn't do this favor for Eggman, he probably wouldn't accept her into his circle; that meant no claiming back what was hers, no continuation of Project Miracle. No revenge against whoever it was who'd dared turn her laboratory into a metal corpse.</p>
<p>She thought hard all the way to the office, all the way through the parking lot, and while walking through the many long, metallic halls. The Commander's office building wasn't nearly as sterile and unprepossessing as the laboratories were. Only a handful of times had she traversed through the faded, mostly white walls, with splashes of watercolor paintings and bits of humanity hither and thither. A laugh. The smell of coffee. Actual furniture from deco and modern to antique sat in this or that office.</p>
<p>Isolena flashed her badge to a guard, who let her pass into the more sensitive focal points of the building. On she walked, her shoes clacking softly on the dark oak floor. This was unlike the previous time she and her husband had arrived. This time, people gave her special looks-pity, curiosity, fear.</p>
<p>Inside, she snarled.</p>
<p>The Commander's office was at the end of the hall. A slight decades-past feel rose to it, what with the medium-gray filing cabinets and a brown door with a small square glass window on it. She knocked, expecting the secretary, but the broad-shouldered, serious man answered himself. Same as always: pressed uniform, shimmering medals of bravery, a head chalked full of white hair, and the same piercing eyes that weren't easily deceived.</p>
<p>"Come in," he turned away to occupy his desk.</p>
<p>She shut the door and sat at the ready chair before his imposing figure and equally imposing administrative spread.</p>
<p>His tone was slightly sharp, "What is going on with Project Miracle?"</p>
<p>Yes, never had he been one for polite bantering or offering tea.</p>
<p>Isolena sat stiff and straight, "It's all destroyed, except for one data copy I have."</p>
<p>The man's face flushed a little with anger, "Two labs, was it? And your growth has been taken, too?"</p>
<p>Something in the way his right eye twitched alerted her. Did he know something she didn't? It was highly probable, what with his position privy to receiving intel to such amounts that sometimes even the president blushed with envy.</p>
<p>"Yes," she responded. "I would like to request another lab, but not at this GUN facility. I'd like it at one of our island bases."</p>
<p>"Ex-excuse me? You expect GUN to keep supporting a project that took a decade to reach this far, and is now all but gone?"</p>
<p>"That's not true," she kept her cool. "My specimen is alive and well. However, along with the chaos emerald, it was taken. I want GUN to find those criminals and get it and the emerald back for me. In the meantime, I'm pleased to report to you that my clinical trial has succeeded. The formula is sound."</p>
<p>He bit his lip, thinking.</p>
<p>She attempted to persuade him, "It took us this long to grow our original specimen because of funding issues. However, doing so again won't take more than a year. Our funder is still supportive, as our results are good. I just need two things, while I'm waiting for the return of my first specimen: another chaos emerald and more hedgehog DNA. If anything, this has shown me that Project Miracle can't place all our success in one specimen. Not even a few. To provide blood for hospitals, we'll need a lot of specimens. That's where this project was always headed, to begin with."</p>
<p>Yet, the Commander stared at her with a furled brow.</p>
<p>Isolena leaned forward, hands open on the table, "Don't you want to see countless people cured of horrible diseases? Can't you imagine how this will transform our society for the better? This is what my husband wanted. I want it, too. GUN doesn't have to worry about budgeting, because we have our funder. I just need a lab, proper protection, supplies and technology, and GUN's military power to help me find as many chaos emeralds as we know the locations for."</p>
<p>Not long ago, she'd believed in what she'd just marketed to the man. Even though the words were sour in her mouth now and she cynically laughed inside, Isolena would say whatever she had to in order to secure her goal.</p>
<p>"What about the emerald our agent got you that was stolen? I heard it caused some kind of earthquake?"</p>
<p>Unable to keep a total calm from that, Isolena looked off to the side, a very small annoyed frown on her face, "Sir, how can you believe such magic nonsense? That chaos emerald is just a slightly more special emerald than your average variety. Yes, all seven emeralds have some special properties that have proven perfect for Project Miracle, but they're by no means mystic gems of some type. If I'm to succeed in any regard for millions of people, I'll need all the emeralds. I'll be using a lot of powder."</p>
<p>That was actually a lie. One emerald would have sufficed liberally for thousands upon thousands of specimens. It was that Eggman wanted the emeralds and she would deliver. Whatever his intentions were, she could care less. Her investment of current society was quite slim, as long as she didn't personally suffer.</p>
<p>Heavy silence pressed through the room. Even for Isolena, the waiting was unnerving. The Commander had his eyes lowered, in deep thought about this-and she knew, about other aspects of what had happened that even she wasn't aware of.</p>
<p>At length, he slowly nodded and raised his eyes at her, "Very well. I'll have units and reinforcements put up at Fortress Island. Go there. Put in a request for anything you need. I'll also have five chaos emeralds we've been tracking fetched and brought to you, too. Just give us a couple days." He took on a hard gaze, "And Director, if your work gets hindered one more time, I will shut the entire project down."</p>
<p>"I understand. Thank you, Sir."</p>
<p>"I'll also mobilize a team immediately to search for your first specimen. I do understand that the creature is GUN's property and it shouldn't fall into outside hands. We'll bring it in alive for you."</p>
<p>She only nodded, "I appreciate it."</p>
<p>"Was there anything else?"</p>
<p>"No, Sir. I'll get going on the relocation."</p>
<p>"Very well. You're dismissed. Oh-Isolena."</p>
<p>She's stood, stopped, glancing back.</p>
<p>A rarity, the Commander's tone was sympathetic, "I'm sorry for Richard's death."</p>
<p>No words. She felt nothing. With a nod and a stern face, Isolena took her leave. The first thing she did was return to GUN's laboratories and begin her investigation into the central computer to see if there were any locations of chaos emeralds. To her sincere surprise, GUN had a high-resolution global map of all the locations of five chaos emeralds. She'd doubted the Commander's confident tone when he merely said they'd fetch the emeralds; not look for them. Just, how'd they know where the gems were? Why did they keep track?</p>
<p>Well, Isolena had been forced to admit that the gems were special. So, it made sense that the organization would want to keep tabs on where the gems were. The Commander no doubt knew far more about them than she did. He'd had more encounters with them or with creatures involved with them than she'd at first recalled.</p>
<p>However, two emeralds were not listed. One was her golden one. The other was an enchanting ruby-red emerald. The golden one was no doubt with the thieves and her specimen. The red one? She'd return to getting her hands on it when she had to worry.</p>
<p>Popping a disk in, she tapped a button, folding her arms to wait. The console beeped and she carefully pulled the disk out and slid it into an inside pocket in her shirt. No one would suspect her of doing anything like this, so there was no need to take extra precautions to hide the disk. She always carried sensitive data with her.</p>
<p>Secretly sneering at how GUN was so tough on defenses and so lax with some of its own personnel, she made her way out of the information room to commence her requests for her third lab.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>A little too much of whatever that sauce was kept dripping off the ends of the bun. Now it was a bit too soggy. Relish ran along the top, to him a slightly unappetizing green, with a liberal spread of chili layered above that and a beef hot dog-or so he hoped it was beef-laying beneath in the bun.</p>
<p>Dylan held the chilidog up to examine it with a scientific eye. Doing so, his eye snapped on Sonic, sitting some steps before him, slightly rightward, triple-biting his chilidog to consume it. Excited, he sprung up and dashed over to a long table spread with a colorful garden of food: chips, pizza, fruit, various sliced cheeses, cupcakes, burgers, grilled chicken, cucumbers and broccoli, and a large platter of chilidogs at the end.</p>
<p>Sonic snatched a second and stood there, chomping it, completely unencumbered by any compunction of table manners.</p>
<p>Dylan had certainly never heard anything about the hedgehog's excitable delight in the unhealthy beach food. Before he'd been able to even rise, Sonic had insisted he try the delicacy.</p>
<p>He nearly peeped with a chuckle. Delicacy? Hardly. This was the kind of food he really didn't care for. Not that he was some kind of snob. He just preferred at least one step up, and the usage of a fork and knife.</p>
<p>Oh well. He didn't want to be rude, so he took a hesitant bite. Tails was eating one, too, so it couldn't have been so bad, right? At first, the taste was just average, like he'd expected. Then, heat rose up in his mouth. Standing there, Dylan looked about. There wasn't any need to panic, yet. Just find some water.</p>
<p>The sizzling amplified quickly and he darted his eyes up and down the table. At the far end, next to the many additional chilidogs, were little cups of water. No more time to waste! It burned! He scampered across the sand for the cups. When he got to them, Dylan guzzled one in a second. He let out a wretch of a sigh and then felt his chilidog suddenly gone from his hand.</p>
<p>There was a gleeful laugh and he looked to the right. Sonic was standing there, having taken his food, and was munching it with a massive smile.</p>
<p>"You knew there was hot sauce on that one," Dylan sighed.</p>
<p>"Aw, don't be weak," Sonic quipped happily. "What, never had anything hot to eat before?"</p>
<p>Had he-in this body? Come to think of it, as he'd been fed only essential nutrients through a tube, Dylan realized he had no idea what he could eat, could tolerate, or what he liked now. Surely his taste buds were different. What did hedgehogs like, anyway? Was it like humans where they could build up a tolerance for types of cuisine? Or did they eat more of some type of palette and less of others, per their animal requirements?</p>
<p>He was both curious and upset by this new potential complication.</p>
<p>Yet, he tried to be positive and answered with a hint of sarcastic humor, "No. I've never eaten solid food. You got any edible, tasteless lab paste around here?"</p>
<p>There was no way to know if he was being truthful of not. Sonic and Tails passed an uneasy look, then eyed Dylan.</p>
<p>"Oh-uh-" Tails scratched the back of his head. "I-I'm sorry. I don't want our food to make you sick. Do you think something simpler would make you feel bad?"</p>
<p>Now Dylan felt mean for creating such uncertainty, "Sorry. Joke aside, I actually don't know if solid food will make me feel bad or not. I really did get fed through a tube."</p>
<p>More awkward silence.</p>
<p>Dylan turned and watched Amy coming out of the beach hut, hands full of trays of cookies. She stumbled and caught herself, eyes determined. Relieved to get away, plus concerned for her, Dylan automatically hurried over and grasped the other side of the trays.</p>
<p>"Oh! Dylan! Thank you so much!"</p>
<p>He smiled and they walked the trays to the table. Amy went about unstacking them and laying them out side-by-side: chocolate chip, chocolate chunk, strawberry, sugar, and oatmeal cookies. All organized in a swirling pattern atop each plate. Very picturesque.</p>
<p>"Did you bake all these?" He scanned the types of cookies with interest.</p>
<p>"I did!" She was proud of herself.</p>
<p>Dylan picked one up and popped it in his mouth. Sugar and strawberries and hints of chocolate. It was so tasty that he ate a second one. How wonderful that he still liked baked things! It would have been horrible if he didn't in this body. Baking was one of the few things he loved so dearly, to dislike the taste of such foods now would have been like ripping a great love from him.</p>
<p>Amy cleared her throat, "Uh, you seem to like them. So, they're good?"</p>
<p>"Oh, yes," he happily responded. "I think a third cup less of sugar though would bring out the strawberries more. And one more egg whisked for a minute would help height and texture."</p>
<p>"Really? How do you know? Uh, I don't think you learned about baking from a lab."</p>
<p>Distressed, Dylan felt a sweeping chill go through him. He'd messed up. He wasn't ready to just blab about things he knew, because it would cause more questions. And he wasn't going to lie, either, but it was too late to back step this one now.</p>
<p>Dylan fell silent, troubled as to how he was going to spin the conversation out of this.</p>
<p>Amy patted his shoulder, "I don't mind if you have secrets. I'm sorry. All this must be difficult and scary for you! But you can trust me, even if you don't feel like you can right now. I promise I'll always be your friend!"</p>
<p>The sparkling sincerity in her eyes made Dylan feel small. He recalled her kindnesses she'd already bestowed on him and slowly removed her hand from his shoulder, but he held it, seeming to examine it. With a sigh, he looked out at the trees and water, "Thank you for what you did for me before."</p>
<p>First, she looked confused, then her eyes opened wide and her cheeks pinkened.</p>
<p>She was quite cute, Dylan realized; wait, he thought a hedgehog was cute? Even if he was one now, he still had human preferences, didn't he? His own face felt a little warm.</p>
<p>Amy absently picked up one of the cookies and took a nibble, "Can I ask what was going on with you back at my apartment when I had to-uh-help you? Is it-is it because you-you're-"</p>
<p>Her words died, leaving the air thick. Dylan felt a little ill with uncertainty. It just wasn't right to keep everyone in the dark about all of him.</p>
<p>The girl was keenly watching him, then her lively green eyes drifted away. Somewhere behind him, Sonic and Tails were laughing and tossing cups of water in each other's faces. The dark one, Shadow, was off somewhere, probably drifting along the beach. And the bat called Rouge was standing at the other end of the table munching on carrots and celery.</p>
<p>Were these people his friends now? He barely knew any of them. And, technically, they'd kidnapped him, dumped him into their swirling, confusing, dangerous mission. Dylan didn't want to be there or be part of their problems. Or-were they his problems, too? After all, the emerald coursed through his veins. It was part of him, whether he wanted to acknowledge it or not.</p>
<p>Was he running away in his heart? He shouldn't, but he was scared.</p>
<p>He swallowed, slowly exhaling. Amy wasn't going to push him if he didn't give her a correct or clear answer now. To do that meant he'd have to lower his defenses a tiny bit, trust just a little. The most frightening part of that for Dylan though was that he knew if he didn't find something new to latch onto for his own hope, then all the secrets he was clutching onto wouldn't be able to give him peace. In fact, he'd end up just a shell of some new type of person he'd not asked to be.</p>
<p>What was identity? He was so different now-or was he? Inside, Dylan knew he hadn't changed. Was he just this body now, with both its limitations and advantages?</p>
<p>He was starting to confuse himself and felt a headache springing up. Shaking his head, he turned back to Amy and forced himself to be honest, "I was having a heart attack. It's a side effect of-of-"</p>
<p>The others in the group were drawing near, including Shadow, who'd come from somewhere, yet lingered a little further away.</p>
<p>"It's-because my heart and my body aren't completely compatible. If-if I get too excited or my body gets stressed, then it makes my heart do that. I-I get heart attacks, pretty much."</p>
<p>And his shoulders sagged. That was a peculiar thing to the group, as they all were giving him variant looks of puzzlement and doubt.</p>
<p>"See, I-I'm not-"</p>
<p>Completely one of you. He didn't belong with humans and never would again. And he didn't belong here, with mobians, because he had been human. In his heart, Dylan still felt he was human. That meant the cruelest part of his new reality was that he wasn't welcome in either world entirely, which meant none at all.</p>
<p>He'd let himself bring the feeling to the surface and consciously make it into a thought and it stung. If he hadn't allowed himself face it, he'd have been able to keep the uncertainty under his skin and not feel like this now.</p>
<p>What would their reactions be if he told them that he was born a human and that this hedgehog body was still strange to him? Walking still hurt, for every step reminded him he was shorter, smaller; a body grown in a lab. Not his body. Not his life. He was physically growing stronger, but what did that matter? The disorientation was still so strong, and so he'd been trying not to think deeply about it. But he just couldn't stop himself from doing so.</p>
<p>Sure, he'd help these people. They were good. He knew, from all he'd heard of their playful discussions and they'd shown to be kind people from how they'd so selflessly helped him already. But after that, he'd go where, do what, become what? Would GUN still chase after him? Would he ever feel free like Sonic, or determined like Tails, or optimistic like Amy? Confident as Rouge did? Or even cemented in resolve like Shadow?</p>
<p>He still hadn't finished his explanation about why he had heart attacks and all of them were observing him quite seriously.</p>
<p>His voice came out just a whisper, "I'm not like you all."</p>
<p>Standing there, Dylan felt nothing besides hopelessness. His mind went back just to hours ago, to waking up on a slab of cold metal. Scientists poking him, sucking his blood out, uncaring of how he'd felt. He hadn't even been worthy to dare feel anything. But he had. His mother determining to deny he was her son had almost broken him. The pain. Pain in his soul he knew no magical chaos emerald could ever heal. How could she do this to him?</p>
<p>He sought her love through all this, still, missing her stroking his hair, scolding him, even punishing him. No more of it, ever, ever again.</p>
<p>He was alone and now being a fool, wiping his eyes, "I'm gonna go down the beach a little. I-I won't go far. I promise."</p>
<p>"Alright, Dylan," Amy rubbed his back as he walked past her.</p>
<p>He could feel them watching, so forced himself to slip away at a casual pace. There wasn't much along the beach: shells, sparkles of washed-up stones; here and there, drenched sticks and seaweed. Dylan absently ran his hand through his quills and stopped himself, clasping one of them. What a strange thing! He used to perform the action as a human. There were no soft locks of his dirty blonde hair now. The spine was long and smooth, but it wasn't the same.</p>
<p>Sighing, he came upon a few long, thick logs and sat down on one, bringing his legs to his chest to close his eyes, rest, and try to think.</p>
<p>The weather was so peaceful. All quiet, minus waves trying to run up the sand over and over. He was starting to ask himself philosophical questions when there was a scratching sound just to his right.</p>
<p>Dylan opened his eyes and held in a gasp. Shadow had come up to sit close to him. The hedgehog gazed out at the endless line of ocean and slowly shut his eyes.</p>
<p>"How old are you?" He asked, eyes still closed, as if he were absorbing the breezes.</p>
<p>"I don't understand your question?" Dylan wanted to scoot away, but he knew that would be vain.</p>
<p>"You're not mere days old," Shadow calmly stated-informed him. "What's your real age, hedgehog?"</p>
<p>The red eyes opened and turned to Dylan's own. A shiver ran down the boy's back, but he couldn't look away from such a concentrated gaze.</p>
<p>"I-I don't know?" His voice came out raspy, half-whisper.</p>
<p>His companion's mouth curled into a doubtful smirk and Shadow yet stared into his irises, "You never mastered the art of lying. You're much older than that. Just be truthful."</p>
<p>"H-how could I be older than just weeks?"</p>
<p>"The fact that you respond in that manner proves it. Stop trying. You gave yourself away three times so far: first, when you said you had read about me at some previous time. Second, when you said you'd read about chaos emeralds and my super form some time ago in a magazine. Third, just a few minutes ago when you advised Amy on how to improve her cookie recipe. A laboratory growth only brought to consciousness days or weeks ago wouldn't know of me, or of the others; or, for that matter, have mastered speech or thought on any level. You're quite native with both."</p>
<p>Dylan ripped his eyes down, "How would you know?" The words burned on his tongue right after he'd spoken them. What an idiot he was! He'd momentarily forgotten about Shadow's past.</p>
<p>Shadow's voice stung with its calmness, "When you wake the first time, you know nothing, unless selected knowledge has been placed into your mind by someone else beforehand. You fear the emptiness even of a small room, but you don't know what fear is. You just feel without knowing what emotions are. You learn to speak by brute-force instruction. You start to think deeper, but you don't know intricate things within communication like jokes, what teasing is; pop culture references; what it means when people say sometimes you're happy when you're sad, or sad when you're happy. These things take years of struggle to understand, and you still, at times, cannot comprehend their intricate contradictions. No matter how long you live and how much you learn, there are things about living that you'll never fully grasp. It's a burden and reminder always that you are unnatural, an observer, a child in many ways. This is the difference between being grown or created, and being born."</p>
<p>Dylan had turned to study Shadow's expression, or lack thereof, unable to move as the elder hedgehog's eyes had borne through him. His face left no trace of how he felt, but Dylan knew-saw in his eyes-all that there. And jealousy? This hedgehog hadn't been born. He'd been created by scientists. Dylan's body had also been created by scientists, but-they weren't the same at the core.</p>
<p>He felt guilty that Shadow had peeled back such a layer of himself and become so willingly vulnerable to him, a person he had barely any acquaintance with. The hedgehog was desperately trying to pry information from him, but why? This was-</p>
<p>Dylan swallowed. This was the ultimate life form. Didn't all that power much more make up for any intricacies of living he didn't understand?</p>
<p>Yet, something felt very pitiful about Shadow. Confusing. Why would such a powerful person extend himself out like this and possibly make himself look foolish?</p>
<p>Intimidated but curious, Dylan asked a question of his own, "Do people still make you feel like that?"</p>
<p>Shadow smirked with his tone, "I don't care what they think."</p>
<p>"Yes, you do."</p>
<p>The audacity caught him off guard and he glared at the boy.</p>
<p>"Everyone wants to be accepted." Tone growing sadder, he added, "Everyone wants to be loved."</p>
<p>"Do you?"</p>
<p>A sigh, "I-I was. At least I thought so. Not anymore."</p>
<p>The hedgehog's voice came out softer than it was before, "You're lying about your age. It took me years to comprehend past head knowledge what it meant to feel the desire for affection. You couldn't have understood if you'd felt love, let alone lost it, if you were mere weeks old. How old are you?"</p>
<p>A pause. Dylan shifted slightly down the log away from Shadow and picked at loose splinters, "Would you give up being the ultimate life form if you could get back something you lost that meant more to you than anything in the whole world?"</p>
<p>An even, "yes," was the immediate response.</p>
<p>Dylan shot his face up, searching Shadow's eyes. His own were starting to grow wet again. Surprised, he felt he'd overstepped and looked down again.</p>
<p>"I can't." A choked whisper, "It's gone."</p>
<p>"So is mine."</p>
<p>They understood each other, without even explaining it. Dylan threw a piece of the wood on the sand before him, feeling frustrated, "It-it was taken from me and I can never get it back! I don't want to hear people say I'll be fine in time, that I'll grow past this and see the positive things. All those things about scars healing and leaving faded imprints to remind us about hardships that made us stronger. They-their words-it's all so-"</p>
<p>"So belittling. Their sympathy is insulting."</p>
<p>"Yes!" He burst out, then blinking in surprise at himself.</p>
<p>"Because you know, no matter what you do, no matter the time that goes by, no matter what you fill your life with, that something is gone, and it will never be back; never be replaced. It can't be. Did you even tell yourself you'd move on and put things behind you?"</p>
<p>"No-I-I haven't gotten that far, I guess." Dylan felt bewildered at how much Shadow was empathetic, and it made him bolder, "Sh-shadow?"</p>
<p>"Yes?"</p>
<p>"What did you lose?"</p>
<p>If possible, Shadow's body relaxed and his face followed. Though he didn't smile, he brought a foot up on the wood and rested his arm on it. Lovely thoughts passed in his mind's eye and softened his gaze as he looked at cirrus clouds slowly gliding above them in the sky.</p>
<p>But, instead of answering, he asked again, "How old are you?"</p>
<p>This time, Dylan didn't care to withhold that secret. He pressed his hands atop the wood and let his legs dangle, "I'm fifteen. What about you?"</p>
<p>For some reason, he just wanted to hear how the much older, much more tested person would respond. Regardless of his species, and especially regardless that Shadow apparently considered himself still less developed in social nuances than someone born of a female, the hedgehog was far more learned of the world than he. Dylan held respect and awe of him.</p>
<p>Shadow chuckled, "What did your readings tell you about me?"</p>
<p>"What?" Dylan was caught off-guard. "Oh-that you were created by GUN scientists on the ARK decades ago, and that GUN decided the project was dangerous, so they got rid of it."</p>
<p>There was a tone of irony to his response, "But here I am. I even work-or worked for GUN, until we took you out of that laboratory."This had become too much for him. He couldn't help with Project Miracle anymore. Dylan had escaped and he was secretly delighted of it. Let the boy live however he pleased, without interruption from GUN or anyone else. In his mind, Jameson blessed those who'd taken the boy and the chaos emerald away.</p>
<p>"Please, live happily," he sighed up at a sky of velvet black, with just hints of purple day whisking away. For years, he'd loyally worked for GUN, moving from one project to another. Project Miracle had been his latest consuming activity. Richard had impressed him with his sincere spirit. Save lives? That was better than working on bio-weaponry in the supposed name of defensive peace.</p>
<p>Allured at the idea, he'd dropped his other interests and even stepped down a rank to join the man and his wife. All had been so well and good for those three years! Such hopes and such encouragement from the director.</p>
<p>Then-</p>
<p>He leaned on the railing of his third-floor apartment and absently watched the thousands of people and traffic below scurrying about even after dark. Such were the sounds of civilization, sounds of activity and a barrage of white noise that all, together, made up the soul of Central City.</p>
<p>Had he become someone evil, too? Or had he just been misguided? Perhaps, at this point, how he felt or viewed himself was irrelevant. His choices from this second onward were the only thing left to define what he intended to become or what he intended to fix.</p>
<p>Jameson turned away to withdraw into his apartment, but he lingered. The air smelled of grease and fast food, mixed with cut flowers and bread. He sighed and closed his eyes, listening, feeling.</p>
<p>"I should pay for my actions," he whispered heavily, took a step, and froze.</p>
<p>Leaning against the sliding door was a sort of small white creature. Next to her was something else, mostly black, with strips of bold red that seemed to glow in the lack of light.</p>
<p>The white one dropped her arms and took two steps forward, just enough to cast herself in the light of the moon and the surrounding beams of gold from nearby windows. She wore a rather odd-looking outfit of black spandex, a bold pink heart over her chest, over-the-elbow white gloves folded with pink at the tops, and matching white boots sporting a pink heart a piece across the front.</p>
<p>"Jameson," her lower pitch voice was smooth, a tad seductive, serious. "You can start right now, if you like. I'm not a girl to dwell on the past, but I do understand that whole paying for your crimes bit."</p>
<p>Her companion reached her side, his arms crossed, "That's up to you."</p>
<p>Jameson knew the white bat from reputation and was startled by her presence. The black hedgehog with the red stripes on his quills and arms though, that was-</p>
<p>"Gerald Robotnik's Project Shadow," the whisper slipped from his lips.</p>
<p>The hedgehog gripped at his elbows a little tighter. Rouge cast him a knowing look and spoke again, gesturing with her hand out, "Look, Jameson, Director Marshall is recuperating her losses and reestablishing another lab somewhere else. Do you know where? What's she doing?"</p>
<p>Jameson had to rip his face away from Shadow. Fear, trepidation he knew shown in his eyes at that deceptively small frame. Yet, Shadow and Dylan had enough similarities in their method of existence that he involuntarily also felt a strip of pity for this dark, broody boy; and so much more for Dylan.</p>
<p>"She is," he responded. He knew it. Isolena had approached him and requested he continue his work with her on Project Miracle. "I'm not on that project anymore," the words slid out shaky.</p>
<p>"You must go with her," Shadow urged. "We can find out what we must know, but timing and method are more important. Our work would be more efficient if you went. Do you know just what she's doing?"</p>
<p>"Why are you asking?" Jameson forced himself to talk straight to the hedgehog, meeting the red eyes directly. This was a person. Not just a weapon and certainly not a machine. GUN should never have treated this creature how they had. No wonder he'd become so vicious and distrustful. But he wouldn't approach Shadow like they had. Even if he only saw the hedgehog this night, he'd act correctly.</p>
<p>Rouge and Shadow gave each other a searching look and she shifted her weight to her right leg, "We intend to prevent her from succeeding, so we came here tonight to ask you to help us. We want you to go with her and report information to us."</p>
<p>"Why should I?" He honestly didn't know why.</p>
<p>"Dylan's with us," Rouge pulled out the magic card.</p>
<p>Jameson's face paled and he pressed his hand to the railing. She nearly smirked, quite knowing that this scientist had a soft spot for the little minty green teenager. She'd seen some of the security footage of their interactions. But she remained quiet. They'd tossed the dice and the human had to decide now what he would do. Regardless, they'd spy on Project Shadow and make sure Isolena got what she deserved. However, if the man helped them, things would go so much smoother.</p>
<p>Jameson was still gripping the somewhat rusty metal railing, and to the extent that he rubbed some of the redness off on his palms. He didn't notice or care. These were the two GUN agents that had done so many things for the organization, and then betrayed it without even a blink. Rouge was known for her peculiar but highly successful methods. This was also the woman who'd fetched the golden chaos emerald that had cranked all this hell into movement. Shadow, for his brute force and lack of inhibitions for nonsense. A perfect mix of a team. Now they were at the top of GUN's seek-and-capture list.</p>
<p>"How's Dylan?" He softly queried. "The child was so miserable. I just wanted him to--" His tongue stuck to his mouth. "To be free."</p>
<p>The wind nearly took his whisper away, but Shadow heard, and dropped his arms, hands clenched into fists. "Help us," he said between grit teeth.</p>
<p>With no further hesitation, Jameson nodded, "Yes. I will. Not for any of you and I could care less about chaos emeralds." Determination laced with what Shadow thought was love mixed in his tone, "Dylan is an innocent child. I'll do anything you need me to do if it'll help him."</p>
<p>"Well!" Rouge approached him and plucked a small communicator from down her chest. "That's good to hear! I also like that shy kid. Use this to chat with us. It's untraceable. A special friend of mine put it together, so I can guarantee GUN won't know you have it. Just, keep it out of sight."</p>
<p>Jameson fingered the little flat disk and put it into his pocket.</p>
<p>She added, "We need you to find out what Isolena's up to. See, we're in a race now: we have to get the chaos emeralds before she does. Before Eggman does."</p>
<p>"E-Eggman?"</p>
<p>A second time, Rouge and Shadow eyed the other.</p>
<p>"I guess you really didn't know," Shadow spoke with a tremor of disgust. "Both of the Marshalls have been in contact with Eggman. He is the anonymous donor that's been channeling money to Project Miracle. Since Eggman wants the research for himself, and the chaos emeralds, that's more than enough reason to stop him and destroy every trace of the project."</p>
<p>"Does Dylan know?"</p>
<p>"Not yet," Rouge informed. "We have to get scarce now. Shadow?"</p>
<p>Her partner kept to his footing, half glaring at the scientist. When his and the man's eyes met again, he smirked, "Why do you carry useless affections for nothing more than a medicine bag grown in a lab?"</p>
<p>Wrenching about, Jameson blinked, aghast at Shadow, and blurt, "Dylan is a person!"</p>
<p>"He's a growth."</p>
<p>"He's a sentient being with feelings and desires just like you are."</p>
<p>Blunt, straightforward, not unkindly so. Just, ordinary tone, ripping right through Shadow.</p>
<p>A being deserving of everything anyone else was. A GUN scientist, of all people, had said so. Believed it. Shadow marveled. Only Maria had seen under his layers of disciplined training and frightening power to the regular boy who'd been afraid and hopeful; a youth of a hybrid hedgehog that had pressed his hand over Maria's cold fingers as her deep eyes had drifted over the rotating earth. Her soul had knit with his. She'd known him better than he'd known himself, because he'd become part of her spirit. Not even Gerald had seen him like she had. There'd never be another human on earth at any point in the present or future that would have eyes like hers to see beneath the biological construction of the thing he was to the heart of his matter.</p>
<p>Except this man had. A GUN scientist. The irony.</p>
<p>"Of all people," Shadow grunted with a leery, upset smirk. But, as Jameson had passed his test, Shadow  was satisfied.</p>
<p>Rouge tugged on him a bit harshly and he away to go with her. Back turned, about to slide into the dark and be gone, he spoke back at the man, "If you truly see that hedgehog like that, then I promise I will free him and make sure GUN can never do this again."</p>
<p>At the back of the apartment building, the two figures slid out and walked up behind a blue one. Sonic observed their body language and nodded. Together, they sped off through the busy streets.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>A wash of warm air blew spices over him and Dylan stirred, fur tingling a little from the surreal feeling.  As consciousness slowly woke him, he was aware of a soft blanket wrapped around him and heard the faint words of the ocean. When another swirl of wind sighed above him, there was then also a familiar smell of something like dough.</p>
<p>There was a tinkling and then a gasp.</p>
<p>Dylan shot up in shock. Amy was standing in the kitchen. A series of steel bowls were sitting before her, with an assortment of ingredients, measuring spoons, a whisk, and a glass baking dish. She was wringing her hands, frustrated.</p>
<p>Curious, Dylan stretched and stood to see what she was doing. The counter was quite a mess of something watery akin to what would have been batter, but hadn't worked out. She'd spilled it. An egg had cracked and then rolled off the counter and broke on the floor.</p>
<p>She was glaring down at it. When Dylan stepped over to her side, she gasped and groaned.</p>
<p>"Can I help?"</p>
<p>"With-with this? I don't see how! It's ruined!" An angry chuckle, "I just wanted to try something new and I messed everything up!"</p>
<p>"Uh, what were you trying to bake?"</p>
<p>With an exaggerated huff and a whirl, she flung a recipe on a part of unvarnished counter and slapped her hand at the card, "This!"</p>
<p>The offensive recipe in question was a chocolate torte roll with white, vanilla cream interior. Dylan had made these types often enough to have mastered them well. They took finesse, especially the part of rolling the chocolate batter layer around the cream filling. It was a rather advanced recipe, which surprised him in a positive kind of way that Amy had been attempting it.</p>
<p>"No. It's not a loss," he kindly placed the recipe card on the counter behind them so it wouldn't fall prey to more of her mess. "I can teach you right now if you'd like."</p>
<p>Amy let out a little gasp of delight and surprise, "Wh-what? You know how to make this kind of thing? I mean, I didn't forget you commented about baking yesterday, but-"</p>
<p>"Yes, I know how to do it," he sheepishly smiled at her.</p>
<p>"Oh, I'd love it if you showed me how, then! I mean, I think we have some time before Sonic and the others need us to go help them with all the spying stuff."</p>
<p>He couldn't bring the corners of his mouth down. The girl was so hopeful and sweet that Dylan wanted to do anything he could for her, "Okay. First, we need to clean the counter and the-uh-the egg."</p>
<p>Another gasp from her and she swirled about for a rag, then dropped overly quickly so that Dylan almost jumped back. A groan emitted from her mouth and she shut her eyes.</p>
<p>The concussion. Alarmed, Dylan grasped her arms and made Amy stand, "I'll clean the egg up. Can you wipe off the counter?"</p>
<p>With a little nod, she went about the task. He cleared the floor and then inspected her ingredients. A wash of delighted familiarity came over Dylan and he automatically entered his zone of confidence. She had everything sitting in relative disarray. He slid the bags and bottles around by type: dry ingredients on one side, wet on the other.</p>
<p>Without thinking-it was just natural-he noted, "I see only gluten-free flours here. That's your preference?"</p>
<p>She nodded.</p>
<p>"Okay. Do you have guar gum?"</p>
<p>"Yes-I'll get it. Why do we need it?"</p>
<p>Dylan began an exposition without thinking it might be obnoxious, "Gluten-free flours tend to lack the thickening and binding mechanism that conventional wheat flours have. There's some mixes that include guar gum, but you have separate, single types. So, that may be why you were having some trouble. Without the stretchyness and binding of gluten, cakes and other baked goods have a tendency to crumble. The best way to try to compensate and get a good consistency is to mix the flour types here cup-for-cup with a little guar gum."</p>
<p>And he went on, pointing, explaining, measuring, showing her tricks and techniques he'd learned over the past few years. In the middle of the lesson, Tails entered, rather surprised and then overly fascinated at the sight before him. He was quiet, coming near and hoisting himself on a stool to watch.</p>
<p>Once the base batter was finished, they moved onto the cream filling. As before, Dylan elaborated on how to achieve the best, smooth consistency, how to ensure the cream was thick and fluffy. At one point, he came behind Amy and placed his hand over hers, as she beat the cream. Neither of them noticed how the position seemed, so involved were they in the task at hand. Tails was actually recording, though they didn't realize that, either.</p>
<p>After a half hour, the torte had been rolled and was lying in a glass pan. The oven was ready and Amy slid the dish in, giggling and tapping her fingers together as Dylan set the timer.</p>
<p>"Where'd you learn all that?" She exclaimed.</p>
<p>"I taught myself," was his response.</p>
<p>"Wow! I can't believe how good you are! That was just amazing! I bet you'd like this guy I follow on PicSnap then. Here, look!"</p>
<p>She'd whipped her phone up and was swiping through a series of pastries Dylan knew very well. The sparkle of her eye and how she glanced at him for approval twisted in his stomach. This was the girl who'd always left such encouraging, uplifting comments on so many of his baking projects? Even when an occasional attempt hadn't worked out completely, she'd only prodded him on with sincerity. More than once, Dylan had wondered who she was and had teased the idea of asking her for her shipping address so he could send her something tasty.</p>
<p>Why was it her? Bewildering. First, she'd taken in his chao. Then she'd calmed him down. Now she'd shown herself to be a great admirer of his art.</p>
<p>The words slipped from his mind to his tongue, "That's my account."</p>
<p>Amy's eyes expanded, "What-really? You're-you're this guy? Wait a minute! How could this be you? Aren't you from a lab-" Gasping impressively at how tactless she was, Amy pressed her hands over her mouth and took a big step away from him.</p>
<p>"Well, I hadn't posted in a few days because-all this-I wasn't-" There was nothing he could say to catch the escaped words. Maybe he'd subconsciously wanted to expose himself. Psychoanalytical nonsense and all that. Yet, how Amy was gaping at him was just too ridiculous for Dylan to be upset about.</p>
<p>"Dylan? Are you-are you hiding something way bigger about your past than the secrets we all know you're not telling us? I thought you were just a few weeks old!"</p>
<p>Miserable, he leaned against the back counter, "Not-not exactly."</p>
<p>All this time, Tails had been reviewing the detailed report of Dylan's vitals and just at that moment he gasped, "Dylan, why do you have human blood in your body? I mean, every mobian does have some, but yours is way more! And your heart pumps both hedgehog and human blood?"</p>
<p>Okay, so maybe he shouldn't have given Tails permission to run those tests, but he'd been curious, too! Just, he'd forgotten that the revelation about his blood might have come up in the results.</p>
<p>Amy seemed more confused.</p>
<p>"I don't want to lie-I mean, there's something I haven't told you yet, but-I-" Oh no. He was starting to feel tight in his chest and hot on his face. Instinctively, Dylan brought his hand up to his heart.</p>
<p>"What is it? You can trust us!" Amy persisted.</p>
<p>Tails was speaking again, "Why do you still have hemophilia if your blood creates chaos powder that's supposed to heal people? It's so incredible-looking! If one of us gets an incurable disease, would you just inject your blood into us and we'd be fine?"</p>
<p>"That's how it's supposed to work. I-I haven't seen it for myself," he cringed and slid his hand atop the counter, trying to balance himself. Now his legs were feeling weak. Stumbling, falling and picking himself up, Dylan tried to make it out of the kitchen.</p>
<p>Amy finally noticed his peril and she grabbed him with a surprisingly strong grip, leading him to the living room and laying him on the couch, "I'm sorry, Dylan! Please, calm down. I was just confused and I want you to trust me."</p>
<p>"No. I'm sorry," he curled up a little and concentrated on his breathing. But it wasn't working. He hurt more and more. Why didn't his blood keep this from happening? This was so frustrating! He'd hurt Amy by withholding his history and it made him feel horrible emotionally, certainly doing nothing good for his physical condition.</p>
<p>He groaned and turned completely away from her and Tails. Then came that same sweet sensation Jameson had gifted him in his quills and almost immediately Dylan exhaled from it. Amy was the one this time running her hands in and out of his spines. Her soft touch calmed him down in mere minutes and Dylan extended his limbs out and lay in a relaxed state.</p>
<p>She withdrew her hands and cleared her throat, voice soft, "I'm sorry, Dylan. Can't you tell us about your birth, really? We care about you. I can see it's a big burden on you. Just, get it out. It'll be good for you."</p>
<p>Did they honestly care about him? After his complete abandonment by his mother, Dylan had become suspicious of people. Now he realized it and felt guilty all over again. What had Tails said? Trust was a choice and when he trusted Sonic, his trust was reciprocated unconditionally. Were these mobians really that simplistically open?</p>
<p>Slowly, Dylan slid his legs to the floor and sat up. Amy was sitting on the futon in front of him, dejected; Tails was yet lingering on the stool, staring at the information he was still processing.</p>
<p>A little nauseous from nerves, Dylan clutched his legs, "This body was made in a laboratory, that's true. The scientists had been growing it slowly for almost a decade-or some similar amount of time. I'm not sure. I don't know much about Project Miracle, because my-"</p>
<p>At the words, he bit his lip and felt lightheaded. But it was okay. He gave himself some seconds and continued, "My parents headed up the program. My father had the goal of making something that could heal people with terminal illnesses. That was this body. I awoke like this just days ago. I'm not even sure how many days it's been." His words faded.</p>
<p>Amy had her head tilted as her brain tried to connect how he'd been phrasing the words. But Tails was all ears and eyes, like a child listening to a horror story.</p>
<p>"Your parents are humans?" Amy simply asked.</p>
<p>Dylan nodded.</p>
<p>"Oh, that's because they created you. That makes sense!" She lit up, satisfied at herself.</p>
<p>Only once, Dylan shook his head. Utter, bated silence consumed all three. He felt all over again like nothing but a freak from a petri dish.</p>
<p>"I was born human," he mumbled.</p>
<p>After five seconds, Amy gasped. That was the only audible response he received.</p>
<p>But he'd revealed that much, so there was no going back. "My father's blood was supposed to work, but something went wrong. I don't know. This body just-didn't work with his blood. One night, I was asleep, and then I woke up like this. Apparently, my blood was compatible."</p>
<p>With a rasp, Dylan wiped his face. He'd started crying and now he couldn't stop; with a heave, he released everything else, "My mother did this to me! She-she told me my father had died! And-and that I wasn't her son. She-she hates me!"</p>
<p>Immediately, Amy had her arms around him, advising Dylan, "Cry, but relax. Just relax. It's okay." Over and over, she spoke soft words, petting him and rubbing his arms. He wept and shamelessly leaned into her.</p>
<p>"I had parents, and then I didn't have them. I had nothing," his voice was small.</p>
<p>A coo and the flapping of wings brought with it Berry, who sat on the futon and blinked at the display before him. At first, Dylan didn't see him there. Amy was still calming him down. A few times, she dabbed his eyes to wipe some tears away.</p>
<p>The chao made a sound and Dylan's ears twitched. Berry had jumped up into the air again and was hovering in front of the couch.</p>
<p>"Oh, I forgot to feed him breakfast!" Amy gasped. Dylan was still in her arms. Divided, she didn't know what to do! She couldn't just leave Dylan in that state, but she also couldn't let the little guy go hungry!</p>
<p>Dylan slowly unwrapped her from him, almost able to pass her a smile. Squeezing her hand in thanks and running his arm over his eyes one last time, he stood up and put his hands out and up at the chao. "Berry, come here."</p>
<p>The baby eyed him uncertainly.</p>
<p>To this, Dylan sighed and managed a half smile, voice trembling, "Berry, it's me, Dylan. I'm sorry that I've been gone a long time, but I'm back. I look different, but it's me, buddy. Don't you know me?"</p>
<p>Still, the chao gave no sign of believing him. He remained where he was, although he glanced at Amy. She was just sitting there in disbelief at yet another twist of that morning's events.</p>
<p>Putting his arms down, Dylan entered the kitchen and pulled out a bowl of blueberries, "Berry, you want some? I know you like these cut in half and dipped in yogurt. Are you in the mood for that or do you want sesame seeds? Here, like this."</p>
<p>Dylan scooped up a tablespoon of plain yogurt and dropped two halved blueberries on them. With hope of reconciliation, he presented the delicacy to the chao, "We can go to the beach anytime we want now, too. Do you want to watch the sunset with me this evening like we always did?"</p>
<p>Warming, Berry landed on the counter and approached the spoon. Dylan waited, watching him. The creature plopped down in front of the food and popped a half of the blueberry into his mouth. Heartily, he began licking the yogurt up.</p>
<p>"I'm sorry, Berry," Dylan whispered, trying his hardest not to cry all over again, though a few stubborn tears trickled down his face. "I couldn't see you. I was so worried you'd be hungry, but Amy took care of you." His voice broke, "I missed you so much."</p>
<p>With a happy hum, his chao had finished eating and he was picking himself up. Dylan didn't expect anything from his friend, yet Berry hopped over, climbing up the front of him, over his little tuft of white fur, and sat on Dylan's shoulder, nuzzling him and kissing his cheek.</p>
<p>"Do you believe me?" He dared ask.</p>
<p>Berry stood up and rubbed his entire head against Berry's temple.</p>
<p>With a swoop, Dylan grabbed Berry and hugged him to him, laying kiss after kiss on the soft head, just drinking in the joy he felt that his precious friend was with him again. If only this! And he had it again, the affection and trust of this little angel.</p>
<p>It was such an overflow of delight, that Amy came over and hugged Dylan, too. Berry reached to touch her face and she giggled. Infectious was their joy, that Tails shuffled over. Amy knew what he was about, grabbing him into their bundle of hugs.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>A message rumbled on her phone. This really wasn't the proper time! She thrust the device into her pocket. With her hair pinned back, the side door open, wind blowing in and such a cacophony of sound, it was only the loose strands tickling her face that upset her further. GUN soldiers sat about. Jameson was there, too, silently swiping to and fro on a tablet. He'd certainly had a change of decision-too quickly. The man thought she hadn't checked the cameras. Thought she didn't know how chummy he'd become with that lab specimen.</p>
<p>Turning away, moving more hair from her face, she almost growled at her phone vibrating again. Fine. She plucked it out and expected something from Eggman-but it wasn't. It was from-</p>
<p>Facing down and away and staring at the endless scroll of blue below them, Isolena pressed her eyes shut tight to suppress any tears that tried to be seen. Worthless emotion! Grief was pointless. She wouldn't waste time on feeling alone or saddened. Her husband was gone. Only achieving her goal was what she had left.</p>
<p>Yet, bringing the message up, she still almost quivered at it.</p>
<p>The funeral was the next day. She wouldn't be present. Formality, that's what such worthless tradition was. After all, Richard had specified that he'd wanted to be cremated and tossed into the ocean. How unoriginal. Why fuss over speeches? Why be there to watch the water works by shallow relatives and false friends and fall prey to it, too?</p>
<p>She deleted the message and put her phone back in her pocket. As she did so, a shimmer of a silver dot in the distance caught her attention. They'd arrived and she'd be able to get right to business; not the work GUN thought she would do, but her tasks per her agreement with Eggman.</p>
<p>Isolena sat back. It was incredible to her that she'd been able to convince the Commander to extend GUN's resources to fetch the five chaos emeralds for her. Maybe that old dog wasn't so intelligent after all! A snap of the fingers was all the time she'd need to have the magnificent gems presented on a platter before her her at Fortress Island; and then she could get on with things.</p>
<p>This was perfect. All the GUN soldiers were at her disposal. Arsenals of firepower, machines, technology, and Eggman's money would make this task a piece of cake. See what she'd do when all this was over!</p>
<p>Eggman thought she was pawn. Almost, Isolena chuckled. What a moron! She'd use him-use GUN. Oh, of course she knew now who'd taken her specimen. GUN had provided her with the classified security footage the previous night. Their reason for such clearance? Twofold: so she'd be aware and on alert in case the traitors attempted to infiltrate Fortress Island; and so that she cold report them to GUN, should they arrive.</p>
<p>Fools. But, despite the high reputations of both, Isolena held no respect for the bat named Rouge nor fear of that hedgehog-alien hybrid freak so-christened Shadow. The footage had also shown her that they'd been working with two other mobians: that snotty brat Sonic, whom everyone adored; and a fox she only knew by the name of Tails.</p>
<p>They'd all pay for daring to cross her.</p>
<p>Now she understood how agitated Eggman felt every time that child and his gang destroyed his plans. Evil purpose aside when it came to the insane man, it was terribly upsetting to have one noisy teenager and a handful of hyperactive mobians destroy years of hard work.</p>
<p>If Sonic tried to get in her way, she wouldn't react idiotically like Eggman always did. She'd be sure to off him without superfluous speeches and monologuing. The doctor was such a fool.</p>
<p>A bit of acid reflux rose and she swallowed it down. Now the base was just seconds away. They were approaching the landing pad. Isolena gripped a rail at the top left of the helicopter, ensuring she was buckled tightly in. The others steeled themselves, too. With a thud, the machine landed. She unbuckled, slid off the seat and touched the asphalt, turning to wait on her assistant. The other two scientists had not come along. That was fine. Here, she didn't really want more people to work alongside her that she'd have to deal with. Jameson was competent enough-albeit too soft in his heart and she knew he wasn't to be trusted. Not after his offensive attachment to her growth.</p>
<p>Several other oversized GUN helicopters were touching down, all of them full of supplies Isolena had ordered to be aired over.</p>
<p>"Bring all the supplies into Storage Bay One," she pointed toward the massive complex and a series of GUN soldiers nodded, beginning to lift large, heavy metal boxes out of the belly of the nearest helicopter. "Except for the crates marked lab. Take those to Laboratory Thirteen, please."</p>
<p>They nodded and walked past her. Other soldiers were jogging out of the complex to assist.</p>
<p>Everything appeared to be fine.</p>
<p>"Are you going right to the lab, or going to take a breather?" Mr. Cray called over the wind whirling from the slowing blades.</p>
<p>Isolena had to respond, "I'm going to take a few minutes to get refamiliarize myself with the complex, then I'll see. I may go to the lab, or I may lay down for a few minutes. Don't wait around for me!"</p>
<p>He nodded, lingering, "I'll make sure everything's unloaded properly!"</p>
<p>She nodded.</p>
<p>Isolena walked after the first retreating sets of soldiers hoisting crates and when inside, turned to take herself down a long hall of metal flooring. To her right was literally just a running wall of glass, so that she could see the entire ocean and the landing strip of the complex. Peaceful, if she'd actually cared. She passively tapped in an access code and entered an office that smelled of cardboard and was riddled in every crevice with dust. This was her administrative home now. There was just a typical, blocky wooden desk, chair on rollers, a computer, one empty book shelf, and a small trash can in the corner.</p>
<p>She shut the door, set a scrambler up to block all cameras and eavesdropping devices, and immediately made a phone call.</p>
<p>"Doctor Eggman," she spoke professionally. "I'm at Fortress Island and already have one chaos emerald in my possession. GUN has sent out resources to get me the others. I should have them all in just a few days. What do you want us to do after?"</p>
<p>He chuckled low, "I will come relieve you of that place when you have them all. Remember: Sonic and his friends have the last two emeralds. That's no worry for us, though. With five in our possession, they'll come running to get them. I'll be there by that time to offer you proper reinforcements. Capture him and his friends and get your growth back."</p>
<p>"And after that?"</p>
<p>"Well, I have superior facilities to what GUN could ever imagine. I'll bring you to one of them. When you arrive, I want your copy of Project Miracle." Another devious rumble of satisfaction, "I also want to get rid of that rodent Sonic. Do you have any problem with that?"</p>
<p>She narrowed her eyes, but didn't need to think about it. Only her specimen mattered. Her project. Her goal. "No," she responded. "I won't interfere with whatever you want to do about him and his friends."</p>
<p>Eggman let off a rolling laugh of glee. It was repulsive and Isolena had to end the call.</p>
<p>Very soon, things were going to get heated, but something else had started festering under her skin. The specimen alive wouldn't satiate her anger anymore. It was the reason all this ill luck had befallen her. It was the reason her husband was dead and she was now relocated to this island hundreds of miles from any main land. Once she had the golden chaos emerald back, and with all she'd learned from this project, she technically didn't need her original specimen anymore. She'd just grow another one! And this time, with Eggman's assistance, she'd do it much faster, with no probability of making the same mistakes.</p>
<p>Of course, purely for the principle of the matter, she had to have both things returned. She'd been insulted and disrespected, and that couldn't stand. GUN could be crushed into oblivion for all she cared. There was only revenge and her goal.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>In another area of the base, Jameson sat down on a twin-sized bed in a small, sterile room that was to be his own personal space. He was afraid of the near future, but he'd made his decision and chosen a side.</p>
<p>He accessed the communicator Rouge had given him and tapped out a message that they'd arrived and Isolena had begun her task of collecting the emeralds. Calling was too risky, despite her claim that the device was untraceable and secure.</p>
<p>There was no response. That was fine.</p>
<p>Weary, he stood and cleaned himself up. With Isolena, there was no down time. She'd be expecting him to accompany her as they aquainted themselves with their new laboratory. Standing to hurry along, he had no intention to arouse her suspicions. Swallowing some water, he donned his lab coat and stepped out into the long, slowly bending hall to catch up with her.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>On a sandy shore, Sonic, Rouge, and Shadow ran to the edge of the water and abruptly stopped. For some seconds, they all gazed out at the deep blue sheet, knowing well what was there beyond their line of sight.</p>
<p>"What do we do now?" Sonic looked to his companions.</p>
<p>"You go back and make sure everything's good at Seaside Village. Shadow and I will sneak out to Fortress Island and watch what's going on."</p>
<p>"How are you gonna do that?" Sonic scanned the ocean, not without some discomfort. "Normally, you'd just use chaos control, Shadow, but to be blunt, you shouldn't now."</p>
<p>All he got was a huff and a glare.</p>
<p>"You both, don't get all petty again, although I do enjoy it when you two start rolling around on the ground strangling each other," so Rouge remarked, hand to her cheek melodramatically. "Really, Sonic, how do you think I snuck onto off-shore places before? Remember Prison Island?"</p>
<p>"Where you got trapped and Shadow had to save you?"</p>
<p>Rouge wasn't amused, but Shadow closed his eyes and smirked.</p>
<p>"That was quite some time ago. I never make the same mistake a second time!"</p>
<p>The boys weren't convinced and actually shared a sarcastic grin.</p>
<p>"Anyway," she crossed her arms. "There's a loading bay some miles down the beach. GUN often uses it to move supplies around and it's the hot support point for Fortress Island. They'll have another wrapped up present of things going out either tonight or tomorrow early. That's when Shadow and I will stow away."</p>
<p>"Sounds solid. But why do you want me to go back to Seaside Village when I'm already out here with you two? Why not just have me go the rest of the way now?"</p>
<p>"You're not exactly the patient type," Shadow stated.</p>
<p>Rouge stepped up next to him with a shrug, "Nor the stealthy, silent type. We need to get aboard in secret. When we need you, we'll call for all of you. This is going to be an all-or-nothing attack. It was good for you to come this far with us now. Team Dark always traveled in threes. You needed to round out the number for us."</p>
<p>"Hey! Team Dark? I never agreed to be your third wheel! I wouldn't have agreed if you'd told me that was your lame reason!"</p>
<p>"Ego bruised?" Shadow lowered his eyes, a sneer and a couple teeth showing.</p>
<p>Rouge placed herself between them, just to be safe, "Take a rain check on the hostility, boy,s but do invite me to watch when you get physical. Sonic, you were extra support in case we encountered any problems in the city, but, fortunately, it's been pretty smooth and you're familiar now with where we'll be. So, go back now, give yourself a break. You'll need it. You'll get to play hero very soon."</p>
<p>Sonic soaked in her words and thought about the logic. Well, if that was their spin, he trusted the two to act professionally, though he still didn't want to go back and lay around. It just felt wrong. Things were going to be hot soon.</p>
<p>"Keep the golden chaos emerald," Shadow pressed it into Sonic's hands.</p>
<p>That was odd. He fumbled a little with it and looked to the dark hedgehog.</p>
<p>"We must go now. Bye until later, faker," Shadow turned away.</p>
<p>Rouge sashayed up and slid her finger down Sonic's cheek, "Don't be glum, honey! I can guarantee you we'll be calling for your help real soon! You won't miss being in the spotlight of action." After a kiss to his cheek, she joined Shadow and they both kicked up sand on their way dashing down the beach.</p>
<p>Sonic lingered, tossing the emerald up like a baseball. This meant more waiting. That was boring. He'd just gotten to stretch his legs, and now? Oh well. He sighed up at the sky and blurred away back through the trees. They'd done this together on the way in, but did he have enough rings left to keep his speed up all on his own for such a long run? The challenge excited him. Swallowing down nerves, Sonic bolted back for the beach, springing over the sand and sliding atop the water, then gaining speed exponentially.</p>
<p>Whistling, he almost laughed at the heavenly sensation of cool wind passing his body. What was water when he could run across it like it was solid ground? For an hour, Sonic ran over the water.  Every so often, he couldn't help not detouring to take a brief gander at cruise liner or a freighter. One of the massive cargo ships blew their horn at him and he waved up at the rusty hulk. When he spotted the rapidly-approaching land, he broke into a new smile.</p>
<p>There was a bridge connecting a strip of land to the island, full of six lanes of traffic. Sonic sprang up clear off the ocean atop the asphalt, causing a few motorists to honk in shock. Merely passing them a flick of a wave, he dashed past.</p>
<p>Only a few cities separated him from the wild jungle and then the stretches of beach and Tails' workshop. Enthused, he ran ceaselessly through cities and cracked, old highways, back the way he and the other two had come. It was enthralling! He skidded through a few detours, running around large loops, sliding, spinning through the empty air as he fell, then rolling and bursting forth to run up and around more loops. For some time, Sonic let his mind free and enjoyed nature and the run; and then he skidded to a stop before a shallow stretch of water that had recently lapped over a barely sunken strip of sand.</p>
<p>"What's one more stretch of the legs?" Sonic tossed a ring around and held it tight on a new dash.</p>
<p>Tropical water sparkled past him. Coral popped out in some areas and some fish splashed. Only the birds were freer than this! With a happy laugh, Sonic sprang over a jutting set of rocks, ever increasing his speed until tears streaked from his eyes.</p>
<p>And, all too quickly, the free feeling ended as he saw Tails' beach hut and workshop in the distance. After five more seconds, he arrived, with a purposeful skidding through shallow water that sent a mighty splash all over his friend, who'd been standing on the beach munching on the last of an ice cream bar.</p>
<p>Tails only had time to gasp. As the water slid down the sand, a drenched fox with seaweed dangling on his ear slouched and huffed at Sonic.</p>
<p>"What?" Sonic laughed.</p>
<p>"Hello," Tails greeted, in a low, irritated way.</p>
<p>"If you come on a run with me, you'll dry off really fast! C'mon!"</p>
<p>Tails instantly brightened and snatched Sonic's extended hand, "Sure! It's been too long!"</p>
<p>"Seriously!"</p>
<p>Sonic pulled Tails next to him and the duo raced along the beach and into the nearby jungle. As Tails couldn't run as fast, he leapt up for a flight, watching his friend below skidding on mossy branches, springing about like a squirrel, spinning, grabbing onto whatever he could to keep the momentum high. At times, he curled into a ball and bounced down, grabbed a thin branch, and was catapulted back up for the sky.</p>
<p>Tails caught him, throwing Sonic up and joining his friend in a good laugh, "This almost makes me feel like Eggman's not a problem right now!"</p>
<p>"So true! Grab me again!"</p>
<p>Obliging, Tails wrenched Sonic up and threw him upward a second time. Sonic pulled Tails down as he fell and they both ended up in the trenches of the jungle again, the fox sliding and springing about after Sonic with matching agility.</p>
<p>"Wanna go camping tonight, Tails? This may be the last time we can have some fun before Eggman and all that stuff!"</p>
<p>"Sure!" The boy joyously agreed.</p>
<p>"Then it's a plan!"</p>
<p>They played at jungle gymnastics for just a few more minutes, before breaking back out into the open to where his hut and the beach were ever faithfully waiting. The two play-splashed each other and then Tails laid on his back in the sand, sighing happily. Sonic joined him.</p>
<p>After a moment of tranquility and calming down, Tails turned to Sonic, "Hey, I have something that's kinda shocking to tell you about Dylan, so prepare yourself. Don't rush up and confront him, okay? Just-just be cool."</p>
<p>"Jeez, Tails, the way you're going on is making me nervous. I'm the coolest guy that was ever born, past, present, and future. What is it?"</p>
<p>The boy's tone was a bit serious, "I mean it, Sonic. Promise you won't freak out?"</p>
<p>Sonic rolled onto his side as Tails had done, so the friends were facing each other. Not amused, Sonic repeated, "Tails, I'm good and you know it. I can handle anything. Remember who you're talking to: Sonic, who' s whipped Eggman's butt uncountable times. Sonic, who's survived the Death Egg more than once, months of torture, Amy's hammer, a black hole-"</p>
<p>Tails cut off Sonic's self-grandiose monologuing, stating, "Dylan was born a human and he was a human until a few weeks ago."</p>
<p>Sonic bolted upright, eyes popping.</p>
<p>"Son-" Gasping, Tails covered his eyes. Sand flew up all over him. His brother was gone. Groaning, Tails rose to wipe himself off and run for the beach hut.</p>
<p>Sonic was at the open door, silently peering inside. He heard a happy giggle and took a step inside, hurrying his eyes around the open place. His focus stopped at the couch, where Amy was holding a paintbrush and a large seashell. Dylan sat beside her, more observing her painting colors in abstract streaks on the shells than participating. He no longer sported any bandages on his body except on his finger and he looked healthier and more rested than Sonic had seen him so far.</p>
<p>He felt uncomfortable at their proximity, but forced himself to walk naturally over to the table.</p>
<p>Amy saw him first and hopped up, "Sonic! Why are you back without Rouge and Shadow? Is everything okay?"</p>
<p>"Yeah. All's well so far. They said they'll call all of us in a couple days," he shrugged, acting as nonchalant as he could. "How's your concussion?"</p>
<p>"Oh! It feels much better! I only get dizzy a little bit now. Thanks-I'm so happy you remembered!" She was still clasping the unpainted edge of one of the shells.</p>
<p>He only gave her a half-attempted relieved smile, before totally and rather jarringly focusing on Dylan, "Hey, Tails just told me you were a human."</p>
<p>"Sonic! Have some tact!" Amy gasped. "You sound like you're attacking him!"</p>
<p>"No-just, how'd he go from being a human to being a hedgehog? It's kinda a big deal, all things considering."</p>
<p>Dylan rose to his feet, attracting Amy and Sonic's eyes to him. Sonic was angry at him. Probably felt betrayed that he'd not told them all from the first day about what he'd been. His impatient, bordering on accusatory face was certainly justified. Dylan worried he'd made a huge mistake. He'd just not been ready. Was that even a legitimate reason, though? Sonic had trusted him without asking any questions. Accepted him. They were all helping him, even if the primary goal or original reason had been to destroy Project Miracle. Because he was the core reason that project had even existed, he was involved in every part of it. Maybe it hadn't mattered about him feeling ready or not to share this or that information with them. They were placing themselves in danger on his behalf.</p>
<p>"I'm sorry," Dylan whispered, rubbing his arm. "I thought-I didn't-I was afraid. I thought if you all knew too soon, you would treat me differently."</p>
<p>Or was that just an excuse?</p>
<p>Tails entered during this scene and slowed his pace, stopping next to Sonic.</p>
<p>Dylan's voice was shaking, "It's not like I was trying to lie to anyone. Just, the last week or however long it's been since all this happened to me has been confusing and scary. I didn't know what would happen to me or where I'd end up. I just-"</p>
<p>His throat tightened and he sat heavily, face in his hands. No one wanted to speak. Amy was angry at Sonic, at herself, at Dylan. Tails had nothing to add, sheepish and sympathetic to everyone's feelings. Sonic uncrossed his arms though, anger with shame mixing in his heart from being so confrontational. It was true. He had no idea what it was like to be an experiment. The closest he'd gotten so far was when Eggman had tricked him into pursuit and he'd ended up having all his chaos energy forcefully sucked from him, electrocuted through his bones and thrown out into space as that hairy werehog. Memories he didn't relish.</p>
<p>With a mental jerk, he suddenly realized something horrific and sucked in air, "Say, Dylan, if you were a human, just-well-how did you end up becoming a-this?"</p>
<p>Not even Tails and Amy had asked, probably because they hadn't allowed themselves to wonder. Sonic wasn't like that. He questioned whatever he wanted to know, with no ulterior motive. The childish curiosity in his personality was endearing.</p>
<p>Dylan admired it even now, but it also frightened him and he felt exposed again. What he wanted to say just wouldn't come out of his mouth and he looked off at nothing, trying to avoid Sonic's gaze.</p>
<p>After another silence, Sonic's comforting, sympathetic tone stung, "Did it hurt a lot?"</p>
<p>In a burst, Dylan ran out, achieving a speed he hadn't managed to reach before until then. Everything seemed nothing but a blur. He ran until he was about a minute into the jungle, and there he slowed to a jog, then a walk, and then he collapsed under one of the many trees and dropped his hands in his lap, sighing. Don't get upset. He had to keep his heart beat relatively normal. Focusing on that, he closed his eyes and listened to the endless barrage of chirps and exotic sounds all around. There were so many trees on the jungle floor, that only little patches of blue peaked in from above. It was quite dim and cool and he took a deep breath, bringing his knees up to his chest.</p>
<p>Even such tranquil ambiance couldn't remove his guilt and then his regret that he'd not been completely truthful as soon as he'd been able. Maybe he was just too broken to deserve anyone's trust again. It was depressing and he cried.</p>
<p>Then red shoes appeared in front of him. Dylan jerked a little in surprise from the rush of wind that caused the surrounding trees and foliage to lash to the side. He still wasn't used to Sonic just appearing from thin air.</p>
<p>And he still wasn't ready to talk about how he'd gone from a human to a hedgehog. No. He'd felt no physical pain, but the emotional trauma he was still struggling through more than made up for it.</p>
<p>Sonic didn't lecture him or raise his voice or do anything accusatory this time. His green eyes were still a little wide and he definitely wanted to speak about the matter, but he manifested great resolve not to and only hinted that he still felt somewhat upset by shifting his feet.</p>
<p>He stood considering the mint green hedgehog before him and merely informed, "Me, Tails, and Amy are going camping tonight. We can't leave you alone, so you sort of have to go, too. We're just gonna go a little bit in the jungle. I know a really cool, clear spot where you can see a bunch of stars. I hope you're okay with it."</p>
<p>"Yeah," Dylan pulled at a patch of grass. The both of them awkwardly fidgeted, then Dylan mumbled, "Sonic."</p>
<p>"Yeah?"</p>
<p>After another pause, he forced himself to face Sonic's hopeful eyes, "I'll tell you everything tonight when we get to this camping place of yours."</p>
<p>Sonic nodded at the heaviness of Dylan's words and he walked right up to the boy, "Sorry that I came onto you like that. I was just surprised. I've never heard of anything like what happened to you. So, don't be upset at me." Even with a sloppy smirk, Sonic leaned forward a bit and extended an open hand, "Let's go back?"</p>
<p>Most happily, Dylan obliged, and Sonic pulled him up with surprising force. Then, as Dylan gasped, Sonic broke into a run, a velocity at which he was consciously surprised this time that he was able to keep up with. In the middle of the dash, he beamed from the incredible sensation of such speed. Of course, they weren't bolting forward anywhere near Sonic's maximum speed, but he was still impressed with himself that he was matching even this pace, and caught Sonic smiling over his shoulder at him.</p>
<p>Surprised over that, Dylan accidentally cut his finger on a piece of bark and sucked air in between his teeth. The cut wasn't overly deep or long, but blood started streaming out just the same. Hemophilia, now mixed with a new golden ingredient.</p>
<p>He nervously eyed Shadow, seeing his companion curiously staring at his blood. A little sheepishly, Dylan scooted back in close and extended his hand to him. It felt right to let Shadow see this. At first, Shadow didn't know what the offering was. He looked at the blood, then at Dylan, then back at the fingers. Hesitating, he took hold of Dylan's hand in both of his and inspected the dripping blood with eyes shifting of interest.</p>
<p>"My heart pumps chaos powder," Dylan stated plainly.</p>
<p>Shadow smeared a little of the rich liquid down Dylan's palm to spread the powder out better in the sun's light. The sensation was also fascinating for Dylan, but he suspected not for the same reason as it was for Shadow. Growing up, his exposure to mobians of any type hadn't exactly been abundant. Sure, he'd talked to some, done some things at times with others. Nothing like this, though. Maybe a good portion of that had been as Jameson had commented prior: humans didn't tend to trust or like mobians. In a superior manner, they looked down on what they viewed as an unjust response by offended aliens that had ruined their dominion on the planet. He'd never questioned it growing up. His happy acceptance of that ignorant status-quo saddened him now.</p>
<p>If he'd tried harder, would he have been able to at least make some human friends and would they had shared intimate moments like this? And now, would he be able to befriend mobians, especially after they learned of his birth? If he truly yearned for real friendship, he couldn't keep his origins a secret.</p>
<p>Dylan made himself focus back on the moment.</p>
<p>Shadow's hands were soft and firm. His heart felt sad far more for Shadow than for himself. He didn't know truly what this soul had gone through, besides horrors even he hadn't ever experienced. Look how Shadow had come out: defensive, hard, secretive. The short time he'd spent with this person, he'd seen and felt it. To hear and be doing this with Shadow was an experience he'd never take for granted, never expose to anyone. It was private.</p>
<p>"Shadow," Dylan softly spoke and his companion almost froze hearing his name slide out so naturally. "I have hemophilia. Even though that cut is small, it could still really weaken me. I need a coagulant to make the bleeding stop."</p>
<p>"What?" The surprise on Shadow's face was almost endearing. "Why would GUN grow a hedgehog with a weakness-let alone such a disabling one?"</p>
<p>He smiled and looked down, a chuckle under his breath, "They didn't exactly. I know that's cryptic, but give me some time. I'm not ready to explain the rest. I promise, though, that I will tell everything-to all of you."</p>
<p>Shadow understood. He'd kept many things inside and he still did. A part of him was jealous that this boy had already been so open in such a blink of time. It was also bewildering that he'd spoken to him so casually and evenly. The sensation of warmth was rare for him to feel so deep in his body. He liked it.</p>
<p>And Dylan showed his fear of Shadow was fading further, and quickly, when he dared ask, "Before we go back, can you show me some chaos energy? Just a very small amount."</p>
<p>Shadow felt embarrassed and then angry that he suddenly felt that way. Well, why not, really? The child had let him inspect his blood up close. What was more intimate than that? He'd return the favor.</p>
<p>Only giving a slight nod, he extended his palm, face-up before Dylan and a small red swirl of some energy appeared and expanded, hovering just a little above his hand. This fragment didn't hurt Shadow. It was infinitesimally too small to make any impact on him. The chaos energy swirled and spun and frolicked in a way he supposed was interesting for others, but he'd seen it uncountable times and his awe of it had faded decades ago.</p>
<p>On the other hand, Dylan's innocent eyes rose and he sat up straight. For some seconds, he didn't blink. With an exhale, he reached out and placed his hand right into the energy.</p>
<p>Shadow almost bristled, made to wrench his arm away. A blistering reprimand was on the tip of his tongue about how chaos energy would harm anyone else, but he nearly bit the muscle instead.</p>
<p>Dylan turned his fingers slowly around inside the energy and golden chaos powder rose right out of his hand, intermixing with Shadow's red chaos energy. Coolness, peace, tranquility prickled over his hand and up his arm. To speak would be to destroy what was going on, so he sat still likewise, watching both energies wave together in harmony. Divine. Nothing like this had ever happened in his life, but who really knew much about chaos?</p>
<p>"It feels nice," he whispered.</p>
<p>Dylan was mystified too, "You've been unwell?"</p>
<p>Shocked, Shadow abruptly cut the energy off, stood, and clenched his fists.</p>
<p>"Shadow?"</p>
<p>The hedgehog remained quiet for nearly ten seconds. When he spoke, his tone was low, "We should head back. Very soon, I must go, but you stay here with Sonic. GUN will be searching for you. Stay low and wait for orders."</p>
<p>"Wait-Shadow! Wh-what did I say?"</p>
<p>Too late. Shadow streaked away and Dylan was by himself. Wait-his finger was still bleeding. Confused still about Shadow's reaction to his innocent words, he pushed himself off the log to go to the others and see if there was any coagulant. The trip took him only a few minutes, which was solid time for him to realize his legs were steady and he no longer felt tired at all from such a basic walk. Energized, he jogged the rest of the way back to where his new acquaintances were still eating.</p>
<p>At the hut, he queried to anyone, "Any chance I can get a coagulant for my cut?"</p>
<p>The question was strange. Normally rubbing alcohol and a Band-Aid was all that was needed. All the sets of eyes on him was unnerving.</p>
<p>"I have hemophilia," he stated.</p>
<p>Still nothing, then Tails exclaimed, "You do? That's so rare! Uhm, I may have something, but if you really have hemophilia, we should get some needles and the right medicine and all that."</p>
<p>Dylan really appreciated the fox then, "Where can we get that stuff?" He'd always had it at his house. His parents had ensured he was properly cared for. Now, there was no such support.</p>
<p>"There's a village really nearby, but it won't have anything. But, say, there's a town an hour or so out-for a normal person, that is. Sonic, can you run there really quick and get stuff if we get you a list?"</p>
<p>Sonic perked up, "Of course, I can! It's been kinda dull here. I need a run."</p>
<p>"Okay! Give us a few minutes." Tails pulled out a tablet and tapped the screen.</p>
<p>His namesakes were fluttering up and down in a manner that Dylan had to smile at. The kid was adorable. Whatever he was feeling was shown in his two tails.</p>
<p>He briskly walked over to Dylan with a note taking app open, "Okay, tell me what you need and I'll put all this together for Sonic."</p>
<p>"Hey, I really appreciate this," Dylan blinked at his bleeding finger again. "Uh-I'd say a dozen syringes, a bottle of rubbing alcohol, swabs, a pack of white cloth, a thick roll of gauze, and a box of Band-Aids. I think you'll have to go to a pharmacy to find all of that, especially the coagulant. Not entirely sure where to get that, actually. It might be a prescription? Before, my p-"</p>
<p>The boy typed so fast, he had everything recorded in sync as Dylan was speaking. Peering up with a smile that Dylan had paused, he caught the golden sparkle on Dylan's finger, "Wow! I know this is gross to say because it's blood, but that's really pretty! Do you really make chaos powder?"</p>
<p>"Yes," he was smiling quite a bit now.</p>
<p>The tails were twitching faster and the fox stepped up to get a closer look, "I'd like to scan your blood sometime-I mean, if that's okay with you!"</p>
<p>It was so easy to feel affection for the boy. Dylan knew how it was now that Sonic and Tails held such an unbreakable friendship. Maybe he'd find a friend like Tails someday, too.</p>
<p>When he nodded, Tails literally gasped with happiness at the thought, "Don't forget! You just said I could! So, is that all the stuff you need?"</p>
<p>Dylan gave him a nod.</p>
<p>On cue, with a little blast of wind, Sonic was there, taking the tablet from Tails, "Just this stuff? Okay, I'll go get it all!"</p>
<p>"If-if you need anything, call me, Sonic!" Tails hollered after the streaking blue dot that was disappearing. No response, of course. Sighing with a smile, Tails turned back to Dylan. "So, want to come to my workshop for a little while? Rouge and Shadow are in the house talking about where to find the chaos emeralds. They'll need you in a little bit, but for now I think you should relax. And-well-" A chuckle and he looked sideways, "I'm a bit curious about you."</p>
<p>"You want to run some scans right now, don't you?"</p>
<p>It had been a lengthy time since Dylan had been around a kid half his age. The fox boy was endearing and he was drawn to every sincere expression and movement Tails produced.</p>
<p>"Yeah!"</p>
<p>Also, he was curious about himself. This could be beneficial for them both, "That's fine."</p>
<p>Tails hopped once, a tiny motion that humored Dylan even more, "Great! Let's go!" The kid snatched his hand and lurched Dylan a bit harshly, setting off at a comfortable jog for the large barn structure about ten seconds off. Breaths of oil and the sweat of metal clung to the air as they drew near. Shining assortments of silver panels, knobs and switches and buttons, a series of varying computers, some skates, cans and cans of endless fluids, some kind of car, and his plane awaited in the hanger. On entering, Dylan had a few more seconds to take in the cluttered yet organized maze of tubes and pipes, toolboxes, hammers and related tools, wiring running along the ceiling, chairs in the corner, and ever so many other mechanical and electronic knacks of pieces of things in progress and forgotten.</p>
<p>The entire right wall consisted of a series of connected oak tables and work benches, all strewn with thousands of peculiarities he had no chance in even guessing the use of. Bolts and nails abounded. Scribbled notes, larger half-worked metal somethings also lay about.</p>
<p>Surprisingly, though, the floor was swept clean. Tails kept a tight clock, ensuring nothing blocked the clearance of walking space over the smooth concrete floor around the Tornado.</p>
<p>The plane itself finally secured Dylan's attention. With a nineteen forties something style, it was a bit sleeker, a bit smoother, a bit shinier red. "Sonic" was painted on both sides in bold, gold lettering set in a border of white. Not a dent nor a scrape of the paint. It sat in the dead center of the expansive workshop, minding its own business.</p>
<p>Tails spoke up somewhere about, "I don't think I introduced my plane to you right! I call it the Tornado. Well, this is one of the iterations. See, I tend to over zealously improve it ongoing, but I don't want people getting confused on the naming, so just the Tornado is good."</p>
<p>Dylan was impressed, "You built it?"</p>
<p>"By this point, pretty much from scratch! See, this was originally Sonic's plane. When we met, he caught me repainting it and sort of making some performance tweaks. But he wasn't mad!" A nervous chuckle. "Since he saw how much I liked it, he just pretty much gave it to me. Uh, I've sort of crashed it more than once and had to build it all new. Couldn't salvage much. For a long time, it had just one seat for piloting, but this one has space for two people in the back!"</p>
<p>That was so sweet! Tails was beaming with pride. Dylan only smiled. The two tails were swooshing slowly up and down.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>"Oh, I'm sorry. Here," Dylan produced his wrist to the boy, who strapped on a bland yellow bracelet and snapped the Velcro tight. A yellow cord ran from the bracelet to a small yellow hand-held tablet. While he punched a button and then waited, Tails approached and dabbed Dylan's cut with a damp cloth. Right. He'd completely forgotten he was still bleeding! Quietly, he watched the child then softly pat sterilizing cream on the finger, then cover it with a layer of ointment. Finally, he pressed a Band-Aid around the cut.</p>
<p>"I don't know the nuances of how hemophilia works, but I hope this will be good enough until Sonic gets back."</p>
<p>He could say nothing, only offering a smile as thanks. The two felt awkward, but Tails turned away and giggled, "Here, I'll show you around! This is just one of my workshops-one of my more remote ones, actually. Most of the stuff in here's just a bunch of work-in-progress ideas that probably won't see it to the end; but! I have a few solid ones that I'm working on!"</p>
<p>So began the grand tour of Tails showing off his gadgets, beginning at the long tables. He was so excited to be explaining all sorts of things and concepts Dylan had no way of understanding, but he smiled and nodded along with it all.</p>
<p>"This is extreme gear. I've been working on further reducing wind drag and improving the aerodynamics! See, every now and then, these three Babylon Rogues show up and wanna race. It never hurts to make your gear better!" He took on an unimpressed look with an additional comment, "Winning over them is always extra sweet, since they're sort of jerks."</p>
<p>The device was some kind of white and gold-toned hover board, which was more than surprising to Dylan. The thing literally hovered from the ground!</p>
<p>"Wanna try it sometime?"</p>
<p>"M-maybe," he doubted it though.</p>
<p>They went on, "Sometimes I like to test Sonic on things like endurance and speed. So, I modified this treadmill to withstand his running."</p>
<p>"How fast does he run, really? I've only seen clips on TV."</p>
<p>"Oh, he often breaks the sound barrier," Tails casually remarked, his eyes more than stroking the sparkly black and red treadmill. "When he goes hyper, he's been clocked past hyper speed."</p>
<p>From the silence, the fox caught Dylan's stunned face. He laughed, "C'mon! Hedgehogs are naturally fast, but Sonic is an exception. Speaking of that, have you been tested on how fast you can run?"</p>
<p>"N-no," Dylan felt embarrassed for some confusing reason. "I-I haven't had an opportunity, I guess? My muscles are still building strength, I think."</p>
<p>"Well, if you'd like to find out sometime, hop on the treadmill. I'll clock you anytime!"</p>
<p>The idea was very appealing to Tails, who nearly rubbed his hands together. Dylan bit at his lower lip. This was the second time someone had brought up the question of his speed; still, honestly, he didn't care to find out.</p>
<p>With a literal skip and another chuckle, Tails took Dylan to the other side of his lab. Here it was a bit homier, almost like a lounge: TV on a crate, a recliner and a small table next to it, strewn with soda bottles and a couple pizza boxes.</p>
<p>"Don't mind this-Sonic's mess," the fox mumbled. There was a chime. Tails gasped, ears twitching, and came over to peer at the tablet of Dylan's vital results, "This is neat! I'm gonna need some time to sort through all this, but you seem pretty healthy from these charts here!"</p>
<p>The data made little sense to Dylan and his eyes began to glaze. Another giggle caused him to refocus on Tails.</p>
<p>"That's just how Sonic reacts when he doesn't understand what I'm saying. He's such a good friend."</p>
<p>"How did you two get so close?" Dylan dared ask.</p>
<p>As Tails unstrapped the bracelet on his wrist and put the tablet down on a nearby bench, he got down on his knees and pulled out a large black box of thick cardboard, "Oh, he was just so cool, so I tagged along and soon enough, we were helping each other! He helped me gain some confidence and made the bullies stop making comments about my tails. I'm sure you know, two tails on a fox isn't the norm. Besides that, there's nothing complicated about it. Now, I help him out and he helps me out. I couldn't wish for anyone else in the whole world to be my brother but Sonic!"</p>
<p>Such a juvenile but so deep and mature. So trusting. Dylan wanted to feel that kind of affection for another, to revel in that level of reciprocated trust.</p>
<p>He asked, "When did you two realize you were friends?"</p>
<p>"I dunno the exact minute when it clicked, but we just knew," Tails slid the large box on the table at the back of the workshop and unsnapped the locks. "I think people make friendship and trust to be a much bigger deal than it is. With Sonic, things seem almost too easy, but that's just him letting you in his heart. He takes a leap of faith in you first, and you just can't help not do the same for him. That's how it was. One day, we both just decided to trust each other. We didn't need to make any big explanation of it. We just knew and that's how it's been ever since."</p>
<p>"He's like that with all of you." A statement.</p>
<p>Tails nodded, "Even you, if you'll let him!"</p>
<p>No wonder that girl Amy was so infatuated with him. Who wouldn't be attracted to sweet, simple, pure love and trust? What a magnet.</p>
<p>"Check these out!"</p>
<p>Dylan blinked a couple times and stepped over to the table to peer at the black box Tails had opened.</p>
<p>"I made these a little while ago. Not sure why."</p>
<p>Inside lay a pair of black sneakers with a line of bold green running up both sides of the shoes, meeting at the front tip in a splash of green. The front was protected with a plate of metal. Instead of laces, both shoes featured four shining metal snaps. In a corner lay a pair of simple, black leather gloves, fingerless.</p>
<p>Dylan hid a wave of sadness. The shoes looked quite similar to the pair Jameson had made him wear when they'd spent hours at that park. Was he doing alright? Dylan could only hope.</p>
<p>"Take them," Tails pushed the box over, where it bumped Dylan in the chest. "You should wear shoes. And, if you find out you can run fast, these would be great! I made them with a really resilient material, so they can withstand just about anything and will last a really long time."</p>
<p>"No, I-" The words stuck in his chest. Receiving gifts had been such a rarity for him, that Dylan had moved past hoping to get any years ago. Even from his parents. This was-he was humbled.</p>
<p>"I insist!" The tails were twitching and moving about rapidly. "Even after our adventure is over, you'll always be my friend, Dylan! I want you to have this stuff. Hedgehog feet are all pretty similar in size, so they'll fit."</p>
<p>Friend. Trust. He was withholding information about himself from them all, because he was still afraid of their reaction and facing himself. That was the opposite of trust. But he couldn't deny this selfless act. Slowly, Dylan picked the shoes up out of the box and sat down to put them on. Inside the shoes, he found a pair of black socks and pulled them out to slide them on first. They, and the shoes, had a cushion feel to them he found very comfortable.</p>
<p>The pleasure must have shown on his face, as Tails delightfully exposited, "The interior is made of a highly resilient combination of memory foam and regenerative gel."</p>
<p>Only smiling under his breath, Dylan pulled the gloves on.</p>
<p>And Sonic raced in, grinding his feet on the cement to stop. So, that's where that long, white-toned streak on the cement had come from leading into the shop.</p>
<p>"Hey, guys, I got the stuff! I had to negotiate to get that coagulant whatever it is, but it's cool!" He noticed Dylan wearing the shoes and gloves and broke into a grin, "Oh, hey Dylan, you look good in that! I'm glad Tails found someone deserving for those shoes. I hope he didn't talk your ears off about all things scientific. Wanna go on a run sometime? Break those shoes in?"</p>
<p>When would they have time for that? Or when would he actually want to do that? Especially after Tails informed him of Sonic's crazy speed, Dylan was even less enthused to stretch his legs in that activity.</p>
<p>Sonic handed Tails the paper bag of medical items and was suddenly standing right by him. Dylan gasped.</p>
<p>"Gotcha, didn't I?" Sonic patted him on the back, grinning at his expense. "C'mon, after you're good about the blood leaking thing for now, we should all go into the house and catch up on our favorite duo's information."</p>
<p>"Oh-yeah. One sec. Tails?"</p>
<p>The boy had pulled out the contents in the bag and was inspecting the syringe and attached rubber tube.</p>
<p>"Can you give me a small doze of the coagulant? Usually, my p-I have someone do it for me."</p>
<p>"Like, this much?" Tails already had a tiny amount of a tube filled with the clear liquid.</p>
<p>Dylan was impressed, "Yes. That's fine. Just inject right in my finger here." So saying, he removed the Band-Aid and placed his hand, palm up, on the table.</p>
<p>Tails furled his brow in concentration. Even more to Dylan's surprise, the boy swiped rubbing alcohol on his finger first, then on the needle, and then placed it evenly and injected.</p>
<p>Dylan softly asked, "Have you done something like this before?"</p>
<p>A nervous chuckle, "Nope! I just looked up how to do it before we came in here."</p>
<p>Amazing. The kid glowed with a new light in Dylan's eyes. He'd become aware that the child was a prodigy, but this was remarkable.</p>
<p>He didn't gag or wince or wretch around needles, nor at seeing blood. Sonic, on the other hand, had turned away during the moment, and was eager and waving, "Come on, already!"</p>
<p>With the contents back in the bag, Dylan's finger recleaned and wrapped, the three walked over to the hut. Amy had removed the table spread of delectables and was rummaging around in the small kitchen, putting things away and cleaning up. As they entered, the low tone of Rouge and Shadow talking rose in the air. The words weren't very distinguishable, except for something Dylan caught that caused him to nearly freeze.</p>
<p>Rouge spoke low, "That Marshall woman is up to something. She's been moving things out to GUN helicopters. I suspect she's working for Eggman, now. Ever since that phone call her husband had with Eggman-"</p>
<p>Then, the bat peered up over a lengthy couch and caught sight of the three.</p>
<p>"Hey, come over, guys. Some of us will be heading out in just a few minutes. You all should get the scoop before we do."</p>
<p>Hiding his trembling, Dylan forced himself to walk in with Tails and Sonic and sit in a chair to listen. Glancing up, Amy caught his attention and smiled at him. It made him smile back a little. Shadow was eyeing him now and then, but for some reason, that didn't make him uncomfortable anymore.</p>
<p>Rouge continued, "I was telling Shadow that, though I have no tech inside GUN anymore to spy for me, I still have my eyes and ears around the campus on the exterior of buildings. I've been watching Director Marshall. She's been very active moving things out into armored trucks and choppers. There's definitely been a shift with her. I'm convinced anything she's doing now is much worse than before."</p>
<p>Dylan's heart sunk. His mother hadn't given up on Project Miracle? What she'd done was evil enough; how could it be worse? Sad as he was, he had to agree.</p>
<p>Then Rouge stunned the room, "I also was telling Shadow that I heard her late husband talking to Eggman. It seems their mystery angel of money was the doctor. If that woman and Eggman are in this together, he's probably still funding her work. The question is, what are they doing, now that Dylan isn't there anymore?"</p>
<p>"They're going to find the chaos emeralds," Dylan noted absently. "I don't know much about all that stuff, but you all said you had to get them. If you all need them, then she certainly does, too. Since you also took the chaos emerald she had, she has to have another if she wants to start Project Miracle again."</p>
<p>They considered his insights and Shadow nodded, "We must assume Eggman's taken the lead on this with her. And we all know that Eggman never plays small. Most likely, he's the one that really wants the chaos emeralds for his own purposes."</p>
<p>"How do we get them before Ms. Marshall does?" Tails questioned.</p>
<p>Shadow answered, "We trail the director. Right now, we have no leads on the locations of the chaos emeralds. Our advantage though is that we already have two. Even if she and Eggman got the other five, they'd still have to come get the last two from us. That means we should take all five from her once she has them all, before Eggman shows up to retrieve them."</p>
<p>Tails clapped, "Get in and get out all in one swoop!"</p>
<p>"Exactly."</p>
<p>"I do like your planning, Shadow. Aggressive and logical," Rouge teased flirtatiously. "GUN's looking for us pretty thoroughly-and I mean all of us, Sonic. Shadow and I are traitors and criminals. You all are just criminals and thieves in their eyes. We all stole government property, so if we get caught, it'll be pretty harsh punishment."</p>
<p>Sonic huffed, "Same ol' stuff. They'll lay off after we get all this over with and expose their crimes to the entire world."</p>
<p>"Until then, though, let's do this right," Rouge's tone was a rare one of seriousness. "Dylan, you stay here with Amy for the time being. GUN isn't aware of this particular workshop and Tails isn't exactly someone they keep an eye on."</p>
<p>Sonic tapped his foot a bit impatiently, "But I am, so I should scram, right, Rouge?"</p>
<p>The bat shrugged, a sassy tilt of her head, "What can I say, sugar? You with those fantastic legs of yours and all that super stuff you like to pull? GUN seems to find you as attractive as I do."</p>
<p>From the kitchen, Amy snorted and slapped a towel on the edge of a counter top.</p>
<p>Rouge ignored the pink girl's reaction, "Okay, it's settled then! You, Shadow, and I will go stalk this director lady. Dylan, Amy, Tails: you three stay here."</p>
<p>Tails let out and audible sigh, "But I could be useful, Sonic!"</p>
<p>"I know, buddy, but not yet. Waiting isn't my thing, but I need you to do that for me for a little while. You're the most capable guy here to keep an eye on Dylan. He needs to be protected; know what I mean?"</p>
<p>The affection in Sonic's voice enthused the boy, who smiled and stopped whining.</p>
<p>Rouge and Shadow stood and turned to the room.</p>
<p>"I need to make a catch-up call before we leave," Rouge's eye twinkled.</p>
<p>Oh, it was one of those again! The ones Shadow enjoyed so much. He crossed his arms and waited, gleeful inside.</p>
<p>She punched a button, withholding a massive smile back, "Knuckles, honey? Are you still doing alright floating all up there alone on your boring island?"</p>
<p>"Stop calling!" Knuckles groaned. "Okay, what is it now?"</p>
<p>Ah, the usual gruff tone, the produced annoyance at her cutting into his do-nothing time with his massive emerald. It was there, as green and sparkly as ever, no longer spinning and glowing in outrage as before. Just, calmly, peacefully making those slow rotations. Same broken columns. Same chipped, ancient steps. Same chirping of happy birds flying about somewhere.</p>
<p>Knuckles had been laying in front of the emerald. He was sitting up now, giving everyone looking in on Rouge's call a near perfect look at the massive gem. Dylan had never seen anything like it before and he was absolutely dazzled speechless.</p>
<p>"I thought of giving you an update on our little adventure, but I'm not in the mood now," Rouge glanced sideways in fake displeasure.</p>
<p>Knuckles scowled, "You better update me, bat girl. This involves me maybe more than it does any of you. The master emerald-"</p>
<p>"Yeah, yeah: stuff about power, chaos, and world destruction," she melodramatically sighed. "Knucky, sweety, we need to collect all the chaos emeralds. That's what we're about to start doing. When we have all seven, we may need to bring them to you. See, we don't know if your wife there can heal chaos emeralds, but we have to try. Our golden one here has a nasty cut!"</p>
<p>To wit, she held up the golden chaos emerald to the screen and Knuckles just about turned white with rage at seeing such a sight.</p>
<p>"What!" He belched out. "How dare-who-this is the height of-" There was no word to describe the way he felt at such a sight. It pained him and Knuckles automatically turned to lay a compassionate hand on his precious master emerald.</p>
<p>"Oh, stop being so melodramatic," Rouge chuckled.</p>
<p>Knuckles glared furiously at her.</p>
<p>She took great delight in messing with him and informed, "When we arrive at Angel Island some days from now, we'll be bringing a new friend with us. Remember how I told you Project Miracle wanted to use chaos powder? Well, they did so and they put all that pretty glitter into a special hedgehog, which we just happen to have with us."</p>
<p>Another outburst from Knuckles, "How can they do that? How is that even possible!"</p>
<p>Rouge glanced at the faces around her. Everyone was humored, except Dylan, who was trying to keep a straight face, but looked withered, "Don't worry your handsome red head. We'll figure it all out when you see us! I'll be in touch!"</p>
<p>"Hey, wait-"</p>
<p>She ended the call and rubbed her chin, then turned to Shadow, "Okay, let's go."</p>
<p>He nodded. The sudden and silent way the group dispersed was curious to Dylan. He continued to sit on the couch, where he actually had a good view all around him of what the others were doing in such a moment. Amy hurried from the kitchen to the front steps, where Sonic and Shadow were standing in some hushed conversation. There were no words Dylan could make out, but Amy hugging Sonic dearly was precious enough. The blue hedgehog was apprehensive, then he relaxed and ran his hand up and down her back. It was an affectionate, friendly hug, but not possessive. He leaned into it and gave her a kiss on the forehead.</p>
<p>She released him. Dylan had been observing Shadow during that physical touch and noticed his slight glance away and then back at Sonic. Amy turned to him, to a bit of surprise on his end, and she likewise embraced him. This display was different. While she'd hugged Sonic in a friendship type manner, her closeness to Shadow just looked different. She hesitated, slowly running her arms around him, pressing into his chest with a sigh. In response, he let slip some defense to not only firmly keep her against him, but then to rub his face in her quills, and there linger. After an inhale, Amy gifted him a kiss on his cheek before she broke their hug.</p>
<p>The look on Sonic's face was something incredible of confusion. None of them spoke. It was Amy who patted them both on the back and returned inside.</p>
<p>Tails rushed over to them, tightly hugging Sonic, then shaking Shadow's hand. He waved as they stepped down and waited for Rouge.</p>
<p>She had no such displays of embarrassing love to go around. Just a wave and a wink at Tails, she joined her companions and away they went, leaving behind a burst of wind and a cloud of sand and dirt. When all was silent, Dylan brought his attention back to the interior of the house and saw Amy standing near the entrance, her back pressed to the wood. Had she been crying? She was certainly sad, her form weary.</p>
<p>Then she saw Dylan had noticed her and she stood straight in a jerk, smiled artificially, and went back outside.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Trusting</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>This had become too much for him. He couldn't help with Project Miracle anymore. Dylan had escaped and he was secretly delighted of it. Let the boy live however he pleased, without interruption from GUN or anyone else. In his mind, Jameson blessed those who'd taken the boy and the chaos emerald away.</p>
<p>"Please, live happily," he sighed up at a sky of velvet black, with just hints of purple day whisking away. For years, he'd loyally worked for GUN, moving from one project to another. Project Miracle had been his latest consuming activity. Richard had impressed him with his sincere spirit. Save lives? That was better than working on bio-weaponry in the supposed name of defensive peace.</p>
<p>Allured at the idea, he'd dropped his other interests and even stepped down a rank to join the man and his wife. All had been so well and good for those three years! Such hopes and such encouragement from the director.</p>
<p>Then-</p>
<p>He leaned on the railing of his third-floor apartment and absently watched the thousands of people and traffic below scurrying about even after dark. Such were the sounds of civilization, sounds of activity and a barrage of white noise that all, together, made up the soul of Central City.</p>
<p>Had he become someone evil, too? Or had he just been misguided? Perhaps, at this point, how he felt or viewed himself was irrelevant. His choices from this second onward were the only thing left to define what he intended to become or what he intended to fix.</p>
<p>Jameson turned away to withdraw into his apartment, but he lingered. The air smelled of grease and fast food, mixed with cut flowers and bread. He sighed and closed his eyes, listening, feeling.</p>
<p>"I should pay for my actions," he whispered heavily, took a step, and froze.</p>
<p>Leaning against the sliding door was a sort of small white creature. Next to her was something else, mostly black, with strips of bold red that seemed to glow in the lack of light.</p>
<p>The white one dropped her arms and took two steps forward, just enough to cast herself in the light of the moon and the surrounding beams of gold from nearby windows. She wore a rather odd-looking outfit of black spandex, a bold pink heart over her chest, over-the-elbow white gloves folded with pink at the tops, and matching white boots sporting a pink heart a piece across the front.</p>
<p>"Jameson," her lower pitch voice was smooth, a tad seductive, serious. "You can start right now, if you like. I'm not a girl to dwell on the past, but I do understand that whole paying for your crimes bit."</p>
<p>Her companion reached her side, his arms crossed, "That's up to you."</p>
<p>Jameson knew the white bat from reputation and was startled by her presence. The black hedgehog with the red stripes on his quills and arms though, that was-</p>
<p>"Gerald Robotnik's Project Shadow," the whisper slipped from his lips.</p>
<p>The hedgehog gripped at his elbows a little tighter. Rouge cast him a knowing look and spoke again, gesturing with her hand out, "Look, Jameson, Director Marshall is recuperating her losses and reestablishing another lab somewhere else. Do you know where? What's she doing?"</p>
<p>Jameson had to rip his face away from Shadow. Fear, trepidation he knew shown in his eyes at that deceptively small frame. Yet, Shadow and Dylan had enough similarities in their method of existence that he involuntarily also felt a strip of pity for this dark, broody boy; and so much more for Dylan.</p>
<p>"She is," he responded. He knew it. Isolena had approached him and requested he continue his work with her on Project Miracle. "I'm not on that project anymore," the words slid out shaky.</p>
<p>"You must go with her," Shadow urged. "We can find out what we must know, but timing and method are more important. Our work would be more efficient if you went. Do you know just what she's doing?"</p>
<p>"Why are you asking?" Jameson forced himself to talk straight to the hedgehog, meeting the red eyes directly. This was a person. Not just a weapon and certainly not a machine. GUN should never have treated this creature how they had. No wonder he'd become so vicious and distrustful. But he wouldn't approach Shadow like they had. Even if he only saw the hedgehog this night, he'd act correctly.</p>
<p>Rouge and Shadow gave each other a searching look and she shifted her weight to her right leg, "We intend to prevent her from succeeding, so we came here tonight to ask you to help us. We want you to go with her and report information to us."</p>
<p>"Why should I?" He honestly didn't know why.</p>
<p>"Dylan's with us," Rouge pulled out the magic card.</p>
<p>Jameson's face paled and he pressed his hand to the railing. She nearly smirked, quite knowing that this scientist had a soft spot for the little minty green teenager. She'd seen some of the security footage of their interactions. But she remained quiet. They'd tossed the dice and the human had to decide now what he would do. Regardless, they'd spy on Project Shadow and make sure Isolena got what she deserved. However, if the man helped them, things would go so much smoother.</p>
<p>Jameson was still gripping the somewhat rusty metal railing, and to the extent that he rubbed some of the redness off on his palms. He didn't notice or care. These were the two GUN agents that had done so many things for the organization, and then betrayed it without even a blink. Rouge was known for her peculiar but highly successful methods. This was also the woman who'd fetched the golden chaos emerald that had cranked all this hell into movement. Shadow, for his brute force and lack of inhibitions for nonsense. A perfect mix of a team. Now they were at the top of GUN's seek-and-capture list.</p>
<p>"How's Dylan?" He softly queried. "The child was so miserable. I just wanted him to-" His tongue stuck to his mouth. "To be free."</p>
<p>The wind nearly took his whisper away, but Shadow heard, and dropped his arms, hands clenched into fists. "Help us," he said between grit teeth.</p>
<p>With no further hesitation, Jameson nodded, "Yes. I will. Not for any of you and I could care less about chaos emeralds." Determination laced with what Shadow thought was love mixed in his tone, "Dylan is an innocent child. I'll do anything you need me to do if it'll help him."</p>
<p>"Well!" Rouge approached him and plucked a small communicator from down her chest. "That's good to hear! I also like that shy kid. Use this to chat with us. It's untraceable. A special friend of mine put it together, so I can guarantee GUN won't know you have it. Just, keep it out of sight."</p>
<p>Jameson fingered the little flat disk and put it into his pocket.</p>
<p>She added, "We need you to find out what Isolena's up to. See, we're in a race now: we have to get the chaos emeralds before she does. Before Eggman does."</p>
<p>"E-Eggman?"</p>
<p>A second time, Rouge and Shadow eyed the other.</p>
<p>"I guess you really didn't know," Shadow spoke with a tremor of disgust. "Both of the Marshalls have been in contact with Eggman. He is the anonymous donor that's been channeling money to Project Miracle. Since Eggman wants the research for himself, and the chaos emeralds, that's more than enough reason to stop him and destroy every trace of the project."</p>
<p>"Does Dylan know?"</p>
<p>"Not yet," Rouge informed. "We have to get scarce now. Shadow?"</p>
<p>Her partner kept to his footing, half glaring at the scientist. When his and the man's eyes met again, he smirked, "Why do you carry useless affections for nothing more than a medicine bag grown in a lab?"</p>
<p>Wrenching about, Jameson blinked, aghast at Shadow, and blurt, "Dylan is a person!"</p>
<p>"He's a growth."</p>
<p>"He's a sentient being with feelings and desires just like you are."</p>
<p>Blunt, straightforward, not unkindly so. Just, ordinary tone, ripping right through Shadow.</p>
<p>A being deserving of everything anyone else was. A GUN scientist, of all people, had said so. Believed it. Shadow marveled. Only Maria had seen under his layers of disciplined training and frightening power to the regular boy who'd been afraid and hopeful; a youth of a hybrid hedgehog that had pressed his hand over Maria's cold fingers as her deep eyes had drifted over the rotating earth. Her soul had knit with his. She'd known him better than he'd known himself, because he'd become part of her spirit. Not even Gerald had seen him like she had. There'd never be another human on earth at any point in the present or future that would have eyes like hers to see beneath the biological construction of the thing he was to the heart of his matter.</p>
<p>Except this man had. A GUN scientist. The irony.</p>
<p>"Of all people," Shadow grunted with a leery, upset smirk. But, as Jameson had passed his test, Shadow was satisfied.</p>
<p>Rouge tugged on him a bit harshly and he turned away to go with her. Back turned, about to slide into the dark and be gone, he spoke back at the man, "If you truly see that hedgehog like that, then I promise I will free him and make sure GUN can never do this again."</p>
<p>At the back of the apartment building, the two figures slid out and walked up behind a blue one. Sonic observed their body language and nodded. Together, they sped off through the busy streets.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>A wash of warm air blew spices over him and Dylan stirred, fur tingling a little from the surreal feeling. As consciousness slowly woke him, he was aware of a soft blanket wrapped around him and heard the faint words of the ocean. When another swirl of wind sighed above him, there was then also a familiar smell of something like dough.</p>
<p>There was a tinkling and then a gasp.</p>
<p>Dylan shot up in shock. Amy was standing in the kitchen. A series of steel bowls were sitting before her, with an assortment of ingredients, measuring spoons, a whisk, and a glass baking dish. She was wringing her hands, frustrated.</p>
<p>Curious, Dylan stretched and stood to see what she was doing. The counter was quite a mess of something watery akin to what would have been batter, but hadn't worked out. She'd spilled it. An egg had cracked and then rolled off the counter and broke on the floor.</p>
<p>She was glaring down at it. When Dylan stepped over to her side, she gasped and groaned.</p>
<p>"Can I help?"</p>
<p>"With-with this? I don't see how! It's ruined!" An angry chuckle, "I just wanted to try something new and I messed everything up!"</p>
<p>"Uh, what were you trying to bake?"</p>
<p>With an exaggerated huff and a whirl, she flung a recipe on a part of unvarnished counter and slapped her hand at the card, "This!"</p>
<p>The offensive recipe in question was a chocolate torte roll with white, vanilla cream interior. Dylan had made these types often enough to have mastered them well. They took finesse, especially the part of rolling the chocolate batter layer around the cream filling. It was a rather advanced recipe, which surprised him in a positive kind of way that Amy had been attempting it.</p>
<p>"No. It's not a loss," he kindly placed the recipe card on the counter behind them so it wouldn't fall prey to more of her mess. "I can teach you right now if you'd like."</p>
<p>Amy let out a little gasp of delight and surprise, "Wh-what? You know how to make this kind of thing? I mean, I didn't forget you commented about baking yesterday, but-"</p>
<p>"Yes, I know how to do it," he sheepishly smiled at her.</p>
<p>"Oh, I'd love it if you showed me how, then! I mean, I think we have some time before Sonic and the others need us to go help them with all the spying stuff."</p>
<p>He couldn't bring the corners of his mouth down. The girl was so hopeful and sweet that Dylan wanted to do anything he could for her, "Okay. First, we need to clean the counter and the-uh-the egg."</p>
<p>Another gasp from her and she swirled about for a rag, then dropped overly quickly so that Dylan almost jumped back. A groan emitted from her mouth and she shut her eyes.</p>
<p>The concussion. Alarmed, Dylan grasped her arms and made Amy stand, "I'll clean the egg up. Can you wipe off the counter?"</p>
<p>With a little nod, she went about the task. He cleared the floor and then inspected her ingredients. A wash of delighted familiarity came over Dylan and he automatically entered his zone of confidence. She had everything sitting in relative disarray. He slid the bags and bottles around by type: dry ingredients on one side, wet on the other.</p>
<p>Without thinking-it was just natural-he noted, "I see only gluten-free flours here. That's your preference?"</p>
<p>She nodded.</p>
<p>"Okay. Do you have guar gum?"</p>
<p>"Yes-I'll get it. Why do we need it?"</p>
<p>Dylan began an exposition without thinking it might be obnoxious, "Gluten-free flours tend to lack the thickening and binding mechanism that conventional wheat flours have. There's some mixes that include guar gum, but you have separate, single types. So, that may be why you were having some trouble. Without the stretchyness and binding of gluten, cakes and other baked goods have a tendency to crumble. The best way to try to compensate and get a good consistency is to mix the flour types here cup-for-cup with a little guar gum."</p>
<p>And he went on, pointing, explaining, measuring, showing her tricks and techniques he'd learned over the past few years. In the middle of the lesson, Tails entered, rather surprised and then overly fascinated at the sight before him. He was quiet, coming near and hoisting himself on a stool to watch.</p>
<p>Once the base batter was finished, they moved onto the cream filling. As before, Dylan elaborated on how to achieve the smoothest consistency, how to ensure the cream was thick and fluffy. At one point, he came behind Amy and placed his hand over hers, as she beat the cream. Neither of them noticed how the position seemed, so involved were they in the task at hand. Tails was actually recording, though they didn't realize that, either.</p>
<p>After a half hour, the torte had been rolled and was lying in a glass pan. The oven was ready and Amy slid the dish in, giggling and tapping her fingers together as Dylan set the timer.</p>
<p>"Where'd you learn all that?" She exclaimed.</p>
<p>"I taught myself," was his response.</p>
<p>"Wow! I can't believe how good you are! That was just amazing! I bet you'd like this guy I follow on PicSnap then. Here, look!"</p>
<p>She'd whipped her phone up and was swiping through a series of pastries Dylan knew very well. The sparkle of her eye and how she glanced at him for approval twisted in his stomach. This was the girl who'd always left such encouraging, uplifting comments on so many of his baking projects? Even when an occasional attempt hadn't worked out completely, she'd only prodded him on with sincerity. More than once, Dylan had wondered who she was and had teased the idea of asking her for her shipping address so he could send her something tasty.</p>
<p>Why was it her? Bewildering. First, she'd taken in his chao. Then she'd calmed him down. Now she'd shown herself to be a great admirer of his art.</p>
<p>The words slipped from his mind to his tongue, "That's my account."</p>
<p>Amy's eyes expanded, "What-really? You're-you're this guy? Wait a minute! How could this be you? Aren't you from a lab-" Gasping impressively at how tactless she was, Amy pressed her hands over her mouth and took a big step away from him.</p>
<p>"Well, I hadn't posted in a few days because-all this-I wasn't-" There was nothing he could say to catch the escaped words. Maybe he'd subconsciously wanted to expose himself. Psychoanalytical nonsense and all that. Yet, how Amy was gaping at him was just too ridiculous for Dylan to be upset about.</p>
<p>"Dylan? Are you-are you hiding something way bigger about your past than the secrets we all know you're not telling us? I thought you were just a few weeks old!"</p>
<p>Miserable, he leaned against the back counter, "Not-not exactly."</p>
<p>All this time, Tails had been reviewing the detailed report of Dylan's vitals and just at that moment he gasped, "Dylan, why do you have human blood in your body? I mean, every mobian does have some, but yours is way more! And your heart pumps both hedgehog and human blood?"</p>
<p>Okay, so maybe he shouldn't have given Tails permission to run those tests, but he'd been curious, too! Just, he'd forgotten that the revelation about his blood might have come up in the results.</p>
<p>Amy seemed more confused.</p>
<p>"I don't want to lie-I mean, there's something I haven't told you yet, but-I-" Oh no. He was starting to feel tight in his chest and hot on his face. Instinctively, Dylan brought his hand up to his heart.</p>
<p>"What is it? You can trust us!" Amy persisted.</p>
<p>Tails was speaking again, "Why do you still have hemophilia if your blood creates chaos powder that's supposed to heal people? It's so incredible-looking! If one of us gets an incurable disease, would you just inject your blood into us and we'd be fine?"</p>
<p>"That's how it's supposed to work. I-I haven't seen it for myself," he cringed and slid his hand atop the counter, trying to balance himself. Now his legs were feeling weak. Stumbling, falling and picking himself up, Dylan tried to make it out of the kitchen.</p>
<p>Amy finally noticed his peril and she grabbed him with a surprisingly strong grip, leading him to the living room and laying him on the couch, "I'm sorry, Dylan! Please, calm down. I was just confused and I want you to trust me."</p>
<p>"No. I'm sorry," he curled up a little and concentrated on his breathing. But it wasn't working. He hurt more and more. Why didn't his blood keep this from happening? This was so frustrating! He'd hurt Amy by withholding his history and it made him feel horrible emotionally, certainly doing nothing good for his physical condition.</p>
<p>He groaned and turned completely away from her and Tails. Then came that same sweet sensation Jameson had gifted him in his quills and almost immediately Dylan exhaled from it. Amy was the one this time running her hands in and out of his spines. Her soft touch calmed him down in mere minutes and Dylan extended his limbs out and lay in a relaxed state.</p>
<p>She withdrew her hands and cleared her throat, voice soft, "I'm sorry, Dylan. Can't you tell us about your birth, really? We care about you. I can see it's a big burden on you. Just, get it out. It'll be good for you."</p>
<p>Did they honestly care about him? After his complete abandonment by his mother, Dylan had become suspicious of people. Now he realized it and felt guilty all over again. What had Tails said? Trust was a choice and when he trusted Sonic, his trust was reciprocated unconditionally. Were these mobians really that simplistically open?</p>
<p>Slowly, Dylan slid his legs to the floor and sat up. Amy was sitting on the futon in front of him, dejected; Tails was yet lingering on the stool, staring at the information he was still processing.</p>
<p>A little nauseous from nerves, Dylan clutched his legs, "This body was made in a laboratory, that's true. The scientists had been growing it slowly for almost a decade-or some similar amount of time. I'm not sure. I don't know much about Project Miracle, because my-"</p>
<p>At the words, he bit his lip and felt lightheaded. But it was okay. He gave himself some seconds and continued, "My parents headed up the program. My father had the goal of making something that could heal people with terminal illnesses. That was this body. I awoke like this just days ago. I'm not even sure how many days it's been." His words faded.</p>
<p>Amy had her head tilted as her brain tried to connect how he'd been phrasing the words. But Tails was all ears and eyes, like a child listening to a horror story.</p>
<p>"Your parents are humans?" Amy simply asked.</p>
<p>Dylan nodded.</p>
<p>"Oh, that's because they created you. That makes sense!" She lit up, satisfied at herself.</p>
<p>Only once, Dylan shook his head. Utter, bated silence consumed all three. He felt all over again like nothing but a freak from a petri dish.</p>
<p>"I was born human," he mumbled.</p>
<p>After five seconds, Amy gasped. That was the only audible response he received.</p>
<p>But he'd revealed that much, so there was no going back, "My father's blood was supposed to work, but something went wrong. I don't know. This body just-didn't work with his blood. One night, I was asleep, and then I woke up like this. Apparently, my blood was compatible."</p>
<p>With a rasp, Dylan wiped his face. He'd started crying and now he couldn't stop; with a heave, he released everything else, "My mother did this to me! She-she told me my father had died! And-and that I wasn't her son. She-she hates me!"</p>
<p>Immediately, Amy had her arms around him, advising Dylan, "Cry, but relax. Just relax. It's okay." Over and over, she spoke soft words, petting him and rubbing his arms. He wept and shamelessly leaned into her.</p>
<p>"I had parents, and then I didn't have them. I had nothing," his voice was small.</p>
<p>A coo and the flapping of wings brought with it Berry, who sat on the futon and blinked at the display before him. At first, Dylan didn't see him there. Amy was still calming him down. A few times, she dabbed his eyes to wipe some tears away.</p>
<p>The chao made a sound and Dylan's ears twitched. Berry had jumped up into the air again and was hovering in front of the couch.</p>
<p>"Oh, I forgot to feed him breakfast!" Amy gasped. Dylan was still in her arms. Divided, she didn't know what to do! She couldn't just leave Dylan in that state, but she also couldn't let the little guy go hungry!</p>
<p>Dylan slowly unwrapped her from him, almost able to pass her a smile. Squeezing her hand in thanks and running his arm over his eyes one last time, he stood up and put his hands out and up at the chao, "Berry, come here."</p>
<p>The baby eyed him uncertainly.</p>
<p>To this, Dylan sighed and managed a half smile, voice trembling, "Berry, it's me, Dylan. I'm sorry that I've been gone a long time, but I'm back. I look different, but it's me, buddy. Don't you know me?"</p>
<p>Still, the chao gave no sign of believing him. He remained where he was, although he glanced at Amy. She was just sitting there in disbelief at yet another twist of that morning's events.</p>
<p>Putting his arms down, Dylan entered the kitchen and pulled out a bowl of blueberries, "Berry, you want some? I know you like these cut in half and dipped in yogurt. Are you in the mood for that or do you want sesame seeds? Here, like this."</p>
<p>Dylan scooped up a tablespoon of plain yogurt and dropped two halved blueberries on them. With hope of reconciliation, he presented the delicacy to the chao, "We can go to the beach anytime we want now, too. Do you want to watch the sunset with me this evening like we always did?"</p>
<p>Warming, Berry landed on the counter and approached the spoon. Dylan waited, watching him. The creature plopped down in front of the food and popped a half of the blueberry into his mouth. Heartily, he began licking the yogurt up.</p>
<p>"I'm sorry, Berry," Dylan whispered, trying his hardest not to cry all over again, though a few stubborn tears trickled down his face. "I couldn't see you. I was so worried you'd be hungry, but Amy took care of you." His voice broke, "I missed you so much."</p>
<p>With a happy hum, his chao had finished eating and he was picking himself up. Dylan didn't expect anything from his friend, yet Berry hopped over, climbing up the front of him, over his little tuft of white fur, and sat on Dylan's shoulder, nuzzling him and kissing his cheek.</p>
<p>"Do you believe me?" He dared ask.</p>
<p>Berry stood up and rubbed his entire head against Dylan's temple.</p>
<p>With a swoop, Dylan grabbed Berry and hugged him to him, laying kiss after kiss on the soft head, just drinking in the joy he felt that his precious friend was with him again. If only this! And he had it again, the affection and trust of this little angel.</p>
<p>It was such an overflow of delight, that Amy came over and hugged Dylan, too. Berry reached to touch her face and she giggled. Infectious was their joy, that Tails shuffled over. Amy knew what he was about, grabbing him into their bundle of hugs.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~</p>
<p>A message rumbled on her phone. This really wasn't the proper time! She thrust the device into her pocket. With her hair pinned back, the side door open, wind blowing in and such a cacophony of sound, it was only the loose strands tickling her face that upset her further. GUN soldiers sat about. Jameson was there, too, silently swiping to and fro on a tablet. He'd certainly had a change of decision-too quickly. The man thought she hadn't checked the cameras. Thought she didn't know how chummy he'd become with that lab specimen.</p>
<p>Turning away, moving more hair from her face, she almost growled at her phone vibrating again. Fine. She plucked it out and expected something from Eggman-but it wasn't. It was from-</p>
<p>Facing down and away and staring at the endless scroll of blue below them, Isolena pressed her eyes shut tight to suppress any tears that tried to be seen. Worthless emotion! Grief was pointless. She wouldn't waste time on feeling alone or saddened. Her husband was gone. Only achieving her goal was what she had left.</p>
<p>Yet, bringing the message up, she still almost quivered at it.</p>
<p>The funeral was the next day. She wouldn't be present. Formality, that's what such worthless tradition was. After all, Richard had specified that he'd wanted to be cremated and tossed into the ocean. How unoriginal. Why fuss over speeches? Why be there to watch the water works by shallow relatives and false friends and fall prey to it, too?</p>
<p>She deleted the message and put her phone back in her pocket. As she did so, a shimmer of a silver dot in the distance caught her attention. They'd arrived and she'd be able to get right to business; not the work GUN thought she would do, but her tasks per her agreement with Eggman.</p>
<p>Isolena sat back. It was incredible to her that she'd been able to convince the Commander to extend GUN's resources to fetch the five chaos emeralds for her. Maybe that old dog wasn't so intelligent after all! A snap of the fingers was all the time she'd need to have the magnificent gems presented on a platter before her at Fortress Island; and then she could get on with things.</p>
<p>This was perfect. All the GUN soldiers were at her disposal. Arsenals of firepower, machines, technology, and Eggman's money would make this task a piece of cake. See what she'd do when all this was over!</p>
<p>Eggman thought she was a pawn. Almost, Isolena chuckled. What a moron! She'd use him-use GUN. Oh, of course she knew now who'd taken her specimen. GUN had provided her with the classified security footage the previous night. Their reason for such clearance? Twofold: so she'd be aware and on alert in case the traitors attempted to infiltrate Fortress Island; and so that she could report them to GUN, should they arrive.</p>
<p>Fools. But, despite the high reputations of both, Isolena held no respect for the bat named Rouge nor fear of that hedgehog-alien hybrid freak so-christened Shadow. The footage had also shown her that they'd been working with two other mobians: that snotty brat Sonic, whom everyone adored; and a fox she only knew by the name of Tails.</p>
<p>They'd all pay for daring to cross her.</p>
<p>Now she understood how agitated Eggman felt every time that child and his gang destroyed his plans. Evil purpose aside when it came to the insane man, it was terribly upsetting to have one noisy teenager and a handful of hyperactive mobians destroy years of hard work.</p>
<p>If Sonic tried to get in her way, she wouldn't react idiotically like Eggman always did. She'd be sure to off him without superfluous speeches and monologuing. The doctor was such a fool.</p>
<p>A bit of acid reflux rose and she swallowed it down. Now the base was just seconds away. They were approaching the landing pad. Isolena gripped a rail at the top left of the helicopter, ensuring she was buckled tightly in. The others steeled themselves, too. With a thud, the machine landed. She unbuckled, slid off the seat and touched the asphalt, turning to wait on her assistant. The other two scientists had not come along. That was fine. Here, she didn't really want more people to work alongside her that she'd have to deal with. Jameson was competent enough-albeit too soft in his heart and she knew he wasn't to be trusted. Not after his offensive attachment to her growth.</p>
<p>Several other oversized GUN helicopters were touching down, all of them full of supplies Isolena had ordered to be aired over.</p>
<p>"Bring all the supplies into Storage Bay One," she pointed toward the massive complex and a series of GUN soldiers nodded, beginning to lift large, heavy metal boxes out of the belly of the nearest helicopter. "Except for the crates marked lab. Take those to Laboratory Thirteen, please."</p>
<p>They nodded and walked past her. Other soldiers were jogging out of the complex to assist.</p>
<p>Everything appeared to be fine.</p>
<p>"Are you going right to the lab, or going to take a breather?" Mr. Cray called over the wind whirling from the slowing blades.</p>
<p>Isolena had to respond, "I'm going to take a few minutes to refamiliarize myself with the complex, then I'll see. I may go to the lab, or I may lay down for a few minutes. Don't wait around for me!"</p>
<p>He nodded, lingering, "I'll make sure everything's unloaded properly!"</p>
<p>She nodded.</p>
<p>Isolena walked after the first retreating sets of soldiers hoisting crates and when inside, turned to take herself down a long hall of metal flooring. To her right was literally just a running wall of glass, so that she could see the entire ocean and the landing strip of the complex. Peaceful, if she'd actually cared. She passively tapped in an access code and entered an office that smelled of cardboard and was riddled in every crevice with dust. This was her administrative home now. There was just a typical, blocky wooden desk, chair on rollers, a computer, one empty book shelf, and a small trash can in the corner.</p>
<p>She shut the door, set a scrambler up to block all cameras and eavesdropping devices, and immediately made a phone call.</p>
<p>"Doctor Eggman," she spoke professionally. "I'm at Fortress Island. GUN has sent out resources to get me the five chaos emeralds. I should have them all in just a few days. What do you want us to do after?"</p>
<p>He chuckled low, "I will come relieve you of that place when you have them all. Remember: Sonic and his friends have the last two emeralds. That's no worry for us, though. With five in our possession, they'll come running to get them. I'll be there by that time to offer you proper reinforcements. Capture him and his friends and get your growth back."</p>
<p>"And after that?"</p>
<p>"Well, I have superior facilities to what GUN could ever imagine. I'll bring you to one of them. When you arrive, I want your copy of Project Miracle." Another devious rumble of satisfaction, "I also want to get rid of that rodent Sonic. Do you have any problem with that?"</p>
<p>She narrowed her eyes, but didn't need to think about it. Only her specimen mattered. Her project. Her goal. "No," she responded. "I won't interfere with whatever you want to do about him and his friends."</p>
<p>Eggman let off a rolling laugh of glee. It was repulsive and Isolena had to end the call.</p>
<p>Very soon, things were going to get heated, but something else had started festering under her skin. The specimen alive wouldn't satiate her anger anymore. It was the reason all this ill luck had befallen her. It was the reason her husband was dead and she was now relocated to this island hundreds of miles from any main land. Once she had the golden chaos emerald back, and with all she'd learned from this project, she technically didn't need her original specimen anymore. She'd just grow another one! And this time, with Eggman's assistance, she'd do it much faster, with no probability of making the same mistakes.</p>
<p>Of course, purely for the principle of the matter, she had to have both things returned. She'd been insulted and disrespected, and that couldn't stand. GUN could be crushed into oblivion for all she cared. There was only revenge and her goal.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>In another area of the base, Jameson sat down on a twin-sized bed in a small, sterile room that was to be his own personal space. He was afraid of the near future, but he'd made his decision and chosen a side.</p>
<p>He accessed the communicator Rouge had given him and tapped out a message that they'd arrived and Isolena had begun her task of collecting the emeralds. Calling was too risky, despite her claim that the device was untraceable and secure.</p>
<p>There was no response. That was fine.</p>
<p>Weary, he stood and cleaned himself up. With Isolena, there was no down time. She'd be expecting him to accompany her as they aquainted themselves with their new laboratory. Standing to hurry along, he had no intention to arouse her suspicions. Swallowing some water, he donned his lab coat and stepped out into the long, slowly bending hall to catch up with her.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>On a sandy shore, Sonic, Rouge, and Shadow ran to the edge of the water and abruptly stopped. For some seconds, they all gazed out at the deep blue sheet, knowing well what was there beyond their line of sight.</p>
<p>"What do we do now?" Sonic looked to his companions.</p>
<p>"You go back and make sure everything's good at Seaside Village. Shadow and I will sneak out to Fortress Island and watch what's going on."</p>
<p>"How are you gonna do that?" Sonic scanned the ocean, not without some discomfort. "Normally, you'd just use chaos control, Shadow, but to be blunt, you shouldn't now."</p>
<p>All he got was a huff and a glare.</p>
<p>"You both, don't get all petty again, although I do enjoy it when you two start rolling around on the ground strangling each other," so Rouge remarked, hand to her cheek melodramatically. "Really, Sonic, how do you think I snuck onto off-shore places before? Remember Prison Island?"</p>
<p>"Where you got trapped and Shadow had to save you?"</p>
<p>Rouge wasn't amused, but Shadow closed his eyes and smirked.</p>
<p>"That was quite some time ago. I never make the same mistake a second time!"</p>
<p>The boys weren't convinced and actually shared a sarcastic grin.</p>
<p>"Anyway," she crossed her arms. "There's a loading bay some miles down the beach. GUN often uses it to move supplies around and it's the hot support point for Fortress Island. They'll have another wrapped up present of things going out either tonight or tomorrow early. That's when Shadow and I will stow away."</p>
<p>"Sounds solid. But why do you want me to go back to Seaside Village when I'm already out here with you two? Why not just have me go the rest of the way now?"</p>
<p>"You're not exactly the patient type," Shadow stated.</p>
<p>Rouge stepped up next to him with a shrug, "Nor the stealthy, silent type. We need to get aboard in secret. When we need you, we'll call for all of you. This is going to be an all-or-nothing attack. It was good for you to come this far with us now. Team Dark has always traveled in threes. You needed to round out the number for us."</p>
<p>"Hey! Team Dark? I never agreed to be your third wheel! I wouldn't have come if you'd told me that was your lame reason!"</p>
<p>"Ego bruised?" Shadow lowered his eyes, a sneer and a couple teeth showing.</p>
<p>Rouge placed herself between them, just to be safe, "Take a rain check on the hostility, boys, but do invite me to watch when the pummeling begins. Sonic, you were extra support in case we encountered any problems in the city, but, fortunately, it's been pretty smooth and you're familiar now with where we'll be. So, go back now; give yourself a break. You'll need it. You'll get to play hero very soon."</p>
<p>Sonic soaked in her words and thought about the logic. Well, if that was their spin, he trusted the two to act professionally, though he still didn't want to go back and lay around. It just felt wrong. Things were going to be hot soon.</p>
<p>"Keep the golden chaos emerald," Shadow pressed it into Sonic's hands.</p>
<p>That was odd. He fumbled a little with it and looked to the dark hedgehog.</p>
<p>"We must go now. Bye until later, faker," Shadow turned away.</p>
<p>Rouge sashayed up and slid her finger down Sonic's cheek, "Don't be glum, honey! I can guarantee you we'll be calling for your help real soon! You won't miss being in the spotlight of action." After a kiss to his cheek, she joined Shadow and they both kicked up sand on their way dashing down the beach.</p>
<p>Sonic lingered, tossing the emerald up like a baseball. This meant more waiting. That was boring. He'd just gotten to stretch his legs, and now? Oh well. He sighed up at the sky and blurred away back through the trees. They'd done this together on the way in, but did he have enough rings left to keep his speed up all on his own for such a long run? The challenge excited him. Swallowing down nerves, Sonic bolted back for the beach, springing over the sand and sliding atop the water, then gaining speed exponentially.</p>
<p>Whistling, he almost laughed at the heavenly sensation of cool wind passing his body. What was water when he could run across it like it was solid ground? For an hour, Sonic ran over the water. Every so often, he couldn't help not detouring to take a brief gander at cruise liner or a freighter. One of the massive cargo ships blew their horn at him and he waved up at the rusty hulk. When he spotted the rapidly-approaching land, he broke into a new smile.</p>
<p>There was a bridge connecting a strip of land to the island, full of six lanes of traffic. Sonic sprang up clear off the ocean atop the asphalt, causing a few motorists to honk in shock. Merely passing them a flick of a wave, he dashed past.</p>
<p>Only a few cities separated him from the wild jungle and then the stretches of beach and Tails' workshop. Enthused, he ran ceaselessly through cities and cracked, old highways, back the way he and the other two had come. It was enthralling! He skidded through a few detours, running around large loops, sliding, spinning through the empty air as he fell, then rolling and bursting forth to run up and around more loops. For some time, Sonic let his mind free and enjoyed nature and the run; and then he skidded to a stop before a shallow stretch of water that had recently lapped over a barely sunken strip of sand.</p>
<p>"What's one more stretch of the legs?" Sonic tossed a ring around and held it tight on a new dash.</p>
<p>Tropical water sparkled past him. Coral popped out in some areas and some fish splashed. Only the birds were freer than this! With a happy laugh, Sonic sprang over a jutting set of rocks, ever increasing his speed until tears streaked from his eyes.</p>
<p>And, all too quickly, the free feeling ended as he saw Tails' beach hut and workshop in the distance. After five more seconds, he arrived, with a purposeful skidding through shallow water that sent a mighty splash all over his friend, who'd been standing on the beach munching on the last of an ice cream bar.</p>
<p>Tails only had time to gasp. As the water slid down the sand, a drenched fox with seaweed dangling on his ear slouched and huffed at Sonic.</p>
<p>"What?" Sonic laughed.</p>
<p>"Hello," Tails greeted, in a low, irritated way.</p>
<p>"If you come on a run with me, you'll dry off really fast! C'mon!"</p>
<p>Tails instantly brightened and snatched Sonic's extended hand, "Sure! It's been too long!"</p>
<p>"Seriously!"</p>
<p>Sonic pulled Tails next to him and the duo raced along the beach and into the nearby jungle. As Tails couldn't run as fast, he leapt up for a flight, watching his friend below skidding on mossy branches, springing about like a squirrel, spinning, grabbing onto whatever he could to keep the momentum high. At times, he curled into a ball and bounced down, grabbed a thin branch, and was catapulted back up for the sky.</p>
<p>Tails caught him, throwing Sonic up and joining his friend in a good laugh, "This almost makes me feel like Eggman's not a problem right now!"</p>
<p>"So true! Grab me again!"</p>
<p>Obliging, Tails wrenched Sonic up and threw him upward a second time. Sonic pulled Tails down as he fell and they both ended up in the trenches of the jungle again, the fox sliding and springing about after Sonic with matching agility.</p>
<p>"Wanna go camping tonight, Tails? This may be the last time we can have some fun before Eggman and all that stuff!"</p>
<p>"Sure!" The boy joyously agreed.</p>
<p>"Then it's a plan!"</p>
<p>They played at jungle gymnastics for just a few more minutes, before breaking back out into the open to where his hut and the beach were ever faithfully waiting. The two play-splashed each other and then Tails laid on his back in the sand, sighing happily. Sonic joined him.</p>
<p>After a moment of tranquility and calming down, Tails turned to Sonic, "Hey, I have something that's kinda shocking to tell you about Dylan, so prepare yourself. Don't rush up and confront him, okay? Just-just be cool."</p>
<p>"Jeez, Tails, the way you're going on is making me nervous. I'm the coolest guy that was ever born, past, present, and future. What is it?"</p>
<p>The boy's tone was a bit serious, "I mean it, Sonic. Promise you won't freak out?"</p>
<p>Sonic rolled onto his side as Tails had done, so the friends were facing each other. Not amused, Sonic repeated, "Tails, I'm good and you know it. I can handle anything. Remember who you're talking to: Sonic, who' s whipped Eggman's butt uncountable times. Sonic, who's survived the Death Egg more than once, months of torture, Amy's hammer, a black hole-"</p>
<p>Tails cut off Sonic's self-grandiose monologuing, stating, "Dylan was born a human and he was a human until a few weeks ago."</p>
<p>Sonic bolted upright, eyes popping.</p>
<p>"Son-" Gasping, Tails covered his eyes. Sand flew up all over him. His brother was gone. Groaning, Tails rose to wipe himself off and run for the beach hut.</p>
<p>Sonic was at the open door, silently peering inside. He heard a happy giggle and took a step inside, hurrying his eyes around the open place. His focus stopped at the couch, where Amy was holding a paintbrush and a large seashell. Dylan sat beside her, more observing her painting colors in abstract streaks on the shells than participating. He no longer sported any bandages on his body except on his finger and he looked healthier and more rested than Sonic had seen him so far.</p>
<p>He felt uncomfortable at their proximity, but forced himself to walk naturally over to the table.</p>
<p>Amy saw him first and hopped up, "Sonic! Why are you back without Rouge and Shadow? Is everything okay?"</p>
<p>"Yeah. All's well so far. They said they'll call all of us in a couple days," he shrugged, acting as nonchalant as he could. "How's your concussion?"</p>
<p>"Oh! It feels much better! I only get dizzy a little bit now. Thanks-I'm so happy you remembered!" She was still clasping the unpainted edge of one of the shells.</p>
<p>He only gave her a half-attempted relieved smile, before totally and rather jarringly focusing on Dylan, "Hey, Tails just told me you were a human."</p>
<p>"Sonic! Have some tact!" Amy gasped. "You sound like you're accusing him!"</p>
<p>"No-just, how'd he go from being a human to being a hedgehog? It's kinda a big deal, all things considering."</p>
<p>Dylan rose to his feet, attracting Amy and Sonic's eyes to him. Sonic was angry at him. Probably felt betrayed that he'd not told them all from the first day about what he'd been. His impatient, bordering on accusatory face was certainly justified. Dylan worried he'd made a huge mistake. He'd just not been ready. Was that even a legitimate reason, though? Sonic had trusted him without asking any questions. Accepted him. They were all helping him, even if the primary goal or original reason had been to destroy Project Miracle. Because he was the core reason that project had even existed, he was involved in every part of it. Maybe it hadn't mattered about him feeling ready or not to share this or that information with them. They were placing themselves in danger on his behalf.</p>
<p>"I'm sorry," Dylan whispered, rubbing his arm. "I thought-I didn't-I was afraid. I thought if you all knew too soon, you would treat me differently."</p>
<p>Or was that just an excuse?</p>
<p>Tails entered during this scene and slowed his pace, stopping next to Sonic.</p>
<p>Dylan's voice was shaking, "It's not like I was trying to lie to anyone. Just, the last week or however long it's been since all this happened to me has been confusing and scary. I didn't know what would happen to me or where I'd end up. I just-"</p>
<p>His throat tightened and he sat heavily, face in his hands. No one wanted to speak. Amy was angry at Sonic, at herself, at Dylan. Tails had nothing to add, sheepish and sympathetic to everyone's feelings. Sonic uncrossed his arms though, anger with shame mixing in his heart from being so confrontational. It was true. He had no idea what it was like to be an experiment. The closest he'd gotten so far was when Eggman had tricked him into pursuit and he'd ended up having all his chaos energy forcefully sucked from him, electrocuted through his bones and thrown out into space as that hairy werehog. Memories he didn't relish.</p>
<p>With a mental jerk, he suddenly realized something horrific and sucked in air, "Say, Dylan, if you were a human, just-well-how did you end up becoming a-this?"</p>
<p>Not even Tails and Amy had asked, probably because they hadn't allowed themselves to wonder. Sonic wasn't like that. He questioned whatever he wanted to know, with no ulterior motive. The childish curiosity in his personality was endearing.</p>
<p>Dylan admired it even now, but it also frightened him and he felt exposed again. What he wanted to say just wouldn't come out of his mouth and he looked off at nothing, trying to avoid Sonic's gaze.</p>
<p>After another silence, Sonic's comforting, sympathetic tone stung, "Did it hurt a lot?"</p>
<p>In a burst, Dylan ran out, achieving a speed he hadn't managed to reach before until then. Everything seemed nothing but a blur. He ran until he was about a minute into the jungle, and there he slowed to a jog, then a walk, and then he collapsed under one of the many trees and dropped his hands in his lap, sighing. Don't get upset. He had to keep his heart beat relatively normal. Focusing on that, he closed his eyes and listened to the endless barrage of chirps and exotic sounds all around. There were so many trees on the jungle floor, that only little patches of blue peaked in from above. It was quite dim and cool and he took a deep breath, bringing his knees up to his chest.</p>
<p>Even such tranquil ambiance couldn't remove his guilt and then his regret that he'd not been completely truthful as soon as he'd been able. Maybe he was just too broken to deserve anyone's trust again. It was depressing and he cried.</p>
<p>Then red shoes appeared in front of him. Dylan jerked a little in surprise from the rush of wind that caused the surrounding trees and foliage to lash to the side. He still wasn't used to Sonic just appearing from thin air.</p>
<p>And he still wasn't ready to talk about how he'd gone from a human to a hedgehog. No. He'd felt no physical pain, but the emotional trauma he was still struggling through more than made up for it.</p>
<p>Sonic didn't lecture him or raise his voice or do anything accusatory this time. His green eyes were still a little wide and he definitely wanted to speak about the matter, but he manifested great resolve not to and only hinted that he still felt somewhat upset by shifting his feet.</p>
<p>He stood considering the mint green hedgehog before him and merely informed, "Me, Tails, and Amy are going camping tonight. We can't leave you alone, so you sort of have to go, too. We're just gonna go a little bit in the jungle. I know a really cool, clear spot where you can see a bunch of stars. I hope you're okay with it."</p>
<p>"Yeah," Dylan pulled at a patch of grass. The both of them awkwardly fidgeted, then Dylan mumbled, "Sonic."</p>
<p>"Yeah?"</p>
<p>After another pause, he forced himself to face Sonic's hopeful eyes, "I'll tell you everything tonight when we get to this camping place of yours."</p>
<p>Sonic nodded at the heaviness of Dylan's words and he walked right up to the boy, "Sorry that I came onto you like that. I was just surprised. I've never heard of anything like what happened to you. So, don't be upset at me." Even with a sloppy smirk, Sonic leaned forward a bit and extended an open hand, "Let's go back?"</p>
<p>Most happily, Dylan obliged, and Sonic pulled him up with surprising force. Then, as Dylan gasped, Sonic broke into a run, a velocity at which he was consciously surprised this time that he was able to keep up with. In the middle of the dash, he beamed from the incredible sensation of such speed. Of course, they weren't bolting forward anywhere near Sonic's maximum speed, but he was still impressed with himself that he was matching even this pace, and caught Sonic smiling over his shoulder at him.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Dark Poison</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>They were yet to be called away, but Tails felt that this was, perhaps, the last night they'd have under the peaceful stars at Seaside Village. He was twiddling a cable around in his fingers, looking about, thinking if he was missing anything. One night of jungle camping didn't require much, but there was something he was trying to remember that they should bring if one of those just-in-case scenarios arose.</p><p>Somewhere outside Sonic called, "Tails! You ready? Let's go! I wanna roast hot dogs!"</p><p>"One sec, Sonic!" Tails thought strenuously hard and then-yes! With a snap of his fingers, he loaded a few syringes, coagulant, sewing wax and needles, gauze, a suction device, and rubbing alcohol into a cloth sack, zipped it shut, and slung the strap around his shoulder. Not like they'd ever gotten hurt on these expeditions, but Dylan was there now, and he still had hemophilia to deal with.</p><p>Tails ran out of his workshop to the three awaiting hedgehogs. All of them had backpacks strapped over their shoulders. A gorgeous moon was rising, and the temperature had dropped to a comfortable coolness.</p><p>Sonic waved for Tails to hurry, "Let's go!"</p><p>As Sonic turned, Tails cleared his throat, warning Dylan with a shrug and an apologetic chuckle, "It'll be a bunch of running, but after that, things will settle down. We got a special place Sonic likes to go. You'll see-just keep up! If you have any trouble, I'll help you!"</p><p>"What?" Dylan stupidly gulped.</p><p>Amy tugged on his arm, forcing him into a run with her, "Don't worry, Dylan! Just stay with us slow-pokes!"</p><p>"Are you kidding? Sonic peaked back as he increased his speed. "He's a hedgehog! He should be able to run pretty fast!"</p><p>Amy quipped, "Most hedgehogs do run fast, but they cap at a much slower speed than you, without assistance. Even Shadow has rocket shoes!"</p><p>Sonic just let out a happy, somewhat snarky laugh and burst off ahead of them. His blue streak disappeared into a massive black wall of jungle growth that intimidated Dylan.</p><p>"Lights on!" Tails called to them.</p><p>Amy and he pressed a button and a bright golden light came off the front of the special caps they were wearing. Dylan hadn't known why they'd forced him to wear one too, but now aware, he was so very, very relieved to have a front beam lighting up their paths.</p><p>They were cruising at a pretty rapid pace, faster than he'd run yet, and, honestly, it felt amazing! As he was just steps behind Amy and Tails, Dylan had the benefit to observe how they rotated their bodies and sprang up, and he copied their movements-albeit a bit unsteadily.</p><p>As they boldly entered the jungle, Amy and Tails sprung up to a series of thick, mossy branches overhead and slid across them, spinning in the air and landing on a new set. Dylan didn't want to be left behind and so he held his breath and attempted to do as they'd done, and almost laughed in surprise as he managed to pull it off without hurting himself!</p><p>They rose higher and higher in hundred-year old trees, until the trio were almost completely above the deep depths of the jungle floor. Now the wind was wilder and the stars out just for them.</p><p>Tails rose to Dylan's right, cruising on another branch, crouched a little, and smiled to him.</p><p>"This is fun, isn't it?" He laughed, his body dipping up and down a few times as the arm of tree he was on lifted and lowered. Together, the three sprang to the next maze of intwined jungle with unmatched agility and balance.</p><p>"What's that?" Dylan pointed ahead, gasping. Some massive, circular set of branches had merged into what looked like a sphere.</p><p>"Oh, it's a loop-de-loop!" Amy hopped in right behind Dylan and clasped him around the middle. "I'll help you balance. This is one of Sonic's favorite things. Look-there he goes!"</p><p>As she pointed forward, Dylan turned his eyes to follow her finger. A small blue form raced up and around the loop, effortlessly defying gravity. On Sonic ran, springing high in the air and making a dash for another one a bit further in the distance.</p><p>Dylan had never taken special notice of such things before. His life as a human had been one with feet cemented to the earth, to the urban jungle of bland sidewalks and technology. These gymnastics and gravity-defying stunts were a whole different world he'd never thought he'd cross. Now, he'd broke that divide and the liberated feeling made him wonder in delight at everything he was feeling.</p><p>"Don't slow down!" Tails hopped just in front of them. "Speed up!"</p><p>"Go full force!" Amy further pushed from behind.</p><p>They reached the loop-de-loop. A surge of fear and adrenaline gave Dylan focus. As his first step slammed to the edge of the rise, he pushed himself up, up, around, his head feeling dizzy in a good way.</p><p>"Whoa! Every time I go on one of these, my head spins!" Tails exclaimed.</p><p>At the bottom, Amy boosted Dylan ahead of her.</p><p>"Took you guys long enough!" Sonic dropped from somewhere above, where thick vines were stretched out like clothes lines, attached across a vast empty sky from one old tree to another.</p><p>"Where were you, Sonic?" Amy questioned.</p><p>Sonic flipped clear over them and grabbed her, twirling Amy at the same time he balanced grinding. She laughed like the tinkling of crystal rain that made Sonic join her. It looked like the duo were dancing.</p><p>"I was smelling some strange flowers, waiting on you slow people to catch up!"</p><p>"Well, excuse us!" Tails rolled his eyes.</p><p>On they went, laughing and cruising, teasing, just being friends. After another few minutes, rather abruptly, Sonic jumped and spun and landed on his feet in a large patch of cleared grass. Amy gracefully sprung up and dropped feet-first. Tails propelled up, hovered a little, and descended slowly, his eyes touching on a small, circular hut sitting at the edge of the nearly flat, soft span of grassy field.</p><p>As Dylan had no special movements he'd mastered, he merely hopped off and took a few steps to slow himself down. His heart was beating quite rapidly, but he wasn't worried. It was a good, happy kind of excitement from the rigorous exercise and it would slow down.</p><p>In the moment of calm, he popped open his backpack and Berry fluttered out, just a little wobbly.</p><p>"Sorry," Dylan grabbed him into his arms and kept him there.</p><p>Sonic eyed Amy and Dylan to make sure they were both in one piece, "Tails, you got the matches?"</p><p>"You know I do!" The fox held the item in question in his hand.</p><p>"I'm starved!" Snatching them, Sonic rushed over to a substantial burn pit. Large rocks kept the charred up remains of long-ago kindling cradled. With a tap of his foot and a scowl, Sonic disappeared into the jungle.</p><p>"Where'd he go?" Dylan walked over to the setting and sat down on a large, flat rock, as Tails and Amy were already sitting very close to each other on a big stump.</p><p>"Ah, just give it a minute," Tails tilted his head, lazily smirking. "We don't bother helping Sonic collect wood for the fire. By the time we reach the jungle, he's already done."</p><p>Sure enough, just as Tails finished speaking, Sonic returned so fast that Dylan gasped. He dropped a whole slew of thick sticks and stubby, short logs into the center of the pit. Striking a match, flicking it atop the wood, a merry fire slowly crackled up to a healthy heat. Sonic seemed proud of himself, so his hands on his hips proclaimed as he eagerly watched the flames grow.</p><p>"Hot dog, Tails!" Sonic dropped himself on a stubby log next to Dylan and extended his hand across the boy's chest toward his brother. Once the precious food was in his grasp, he whipped out a long, skinny stick and went about roasting the meat.</p><p>A happy chatter of unimportant, fun things jumped back and forth. Dylan listened, not privy to all the things the three recounted and laughed over. It was fine. He wasn't uncomfortable; just curious, and as he wasn't prone to talk a lot about himself, it was interesting just to listen.</p><p>Suddenly, Sonic tugged on one of his quills and Dylan grabbed at it automatically, turning to the blue hedgehog.</p><p>"I see you got four spines and two thinner ones in the lower middle."</p><p>"I do?"</p><p>Sonic blinked in bemusement, "Yeah. What, you haven't looked in a mirror, yet?"</p><p>He felt sheepish, "N-no, actually."</p><p>"That's crazy!" Amy interjected. "Aww, I'd let you look at mine, but I didn't bring it! Darn it all."</p><p>Dylan was relieved. He really had no interest to see how he looked now.</p><p>"Well," Sonic inspected the meat and returned it over the flame. "Hedgehogs have varying number of spines. It doesn't mean much, really; it's just a bunch of quills we mold how we like."</p><p>Amy giggled, "Don't act so nonchalant, Sonic. We all know you gel your spines every morning."</p><p>Lo and behold, Sonic's cheeks pinked for some seconds. Even Dylan caught it, despite orange light flickering on their friends' face from the fire. But something else passed over Sonic's eyes that he didn't like. Then it was gone, and Sonic was reaching clear over him again for a bun and then in down in front of them both for a can of chili he'd been strategically warming near the fire.</p><p>"This is food from heaven," he was assembling the delicacy with glee.</p><p>Tails and Amy smirked a little, half closing their eyes. Both were holding a hot dog apiece but passed on the chili. Honestly, Dylan wasn't feeling hungry, so he leaned back a little and stared at the fire.</p><p>Then, Sonic having eaten his food in no more than four bites, he bumped him softly, "Hey, wanna step out with me for a few minutes?"</p><p>"What? Oh-"</p><p>There was some kind of twinkle to Sonic's eyes at that made Dylan feel obligated to say yes. Also, he had promised the teen he'd tell him his back story. Now he felt a bit ill, but a promise was a promise.</p><p>He tried to sound casual, "Yeah. Where are we going?"</p><p>"Just to the top of the hill here in the clearing. It's the best place to lay down and look for constellations."</p><p>He rose, so Dylan stood up after him. Again, some odd color bloomed on Sonic's face and then it was gone. Dylan made no comment, but he mentally noted to keep an eye on Sonic's complexion.</p><p>Sonic lead him past the hut to a rise of several feet on the grassy sea. Soft, thick, and very enjoyable to lay in, just like the blue hedgehog had claimed, so Dylan discovered once he was gazing up at a myriad of stars.</p><p>The boys were silent. A minute passed, then another. Dylan had promised, but-to speak of his history brought up pain he didn't want to revisit. Yet, if he didn't, how would he ever move past it and learn how to grow again as a person? These were chains he had to break free of. Doing so would hurt so very much, though.</p><p>He sighed and turned on his side, his back to Sonic, and he closed his eyes.</p><p>"Please, tell me. I'm your friend," Sonic murmured.</p><p>Dylan balled his hands into fists and tried to gather the courage. Every surge of pain in his body gathered together into his thoughts and he almost shivered, hoping Sonic didn't notice. It was his mother. In his dreams, she terrorized him. Her hatred dropped all his hope and reminded Dylan of how he'd come to be living in this different body.</p><p>The pain he'd experienced-and still was-physical and emotional, could all have been tolerable, except for her. Her rejection of him as her child. There was no family left to him now.</p><p>With a slow sigh, not understanding why he opened with the words he did, Dylan cracked, "She burned it right in front of me."</p><p>Sonic listened, waiting.</p><p>"There was just ash. Black ash. And the fire. I-I couldn't do anything."</p><p>At length, he whispered, "What did she burn?"</p><p>Another ten seconds, Dylan curled up with a whimper, "Me."</p><p>Every so slowly, Sonic sat up and stared at the boy next to him. There was nothing he could say, as the terror of realizing what Dylan probably meant sent a shock of coldness down his spine. When he placed a friendly hand on Dylan's shoulder, his friend flinched, and Sonic's anger flared just a teeny bit. He leaned over and pulled Dylan over, so he was lying on his back.</p><p>"What did she burn?" He looked down right at Dylan, his tone pointed.</p><p>The boy didn't want to answer, and he looked past Sonic at the jewels in the velvet sky.</p><p>"What was it?" Sonic persisted.</p><p>"Me-" Dylan mumbled again. "The human."</p><p>They were both still, then Dylan winced, and Sonic realized he'd been squeezing his friends' arms pretty tightly. A bit awkwardly, he let go. Dylan returned to laying on his side, facing away, utterly silent.</p><p>Sonic crossed his legs and tried to keep his anger down, "Why would she do that to you-make you watch that? Who was the woman? A scientist?"</p><p>"Yes," came the small response. Yet, another pause, and his next words made Sonic want to rip his ears out so he wouldn't have to hear anymore, "My mother."</p><p>In a second, he stood up, balling his hands tightly. The torment! The grotesque perverseness of it! The hesitant way Dylan acted about, well, everything it seemed, made more sense now and it ate him up until Sonic felt he couldn't calm himself down.</p><p>Whipping himself back to Dylan, he asked, "Your own mother burned your human body in front of you and changed you into a hedgehog for what-science?"</p><p>The grating, cutting sound of Sonic's voice disturbed Dylan and he slowly sat up to see what was going on. As far as he could see, Sonic looked fine; just angry. But also, his tense posture intimidated Dylan and he felt that he'd better finish telling Sonic the rest as he'd promised before things got too tense.</p><p>"I was told that my father's blood was supposed to be compatible with this body, but it wasn't. Mine was. Something had gone wrong with their specimen and they apparently needed a-a brain and heart. Since my blood was already a match, my mother-she-"</p><p>Sonic twisted his body away so fast that Dylan held his breath. The blue hedgehog's tone was clipped, further worrying him, "It made sense to rip you out of your body and put you there? Was that the logic?"</p><p>Dylan brought his feet close. He may not have known the hedgehog long, but the hissing sound of his otherwise happy voice was starting to frighten him.</p><p>"Something like that," Dylan slowly nodded. "But I think-I think my mother was so grieved over everything-including my father's death-that was going on that she just-just snapped, or something."</p><p>Sonic half burst, "How can you make excuses for her?"</p><p>"Sonic, are you okay?"</p><p>Now he could see that something was very wrong with his new friend. Though it was dark, and he couldn't see Sonic overly well, he could definitely feel a dark aura rising from him.</p><p>"I don't think I should tell you anything else for the moment," Dylan managed to state. He got up and took a step toward Sonic, to which the other one, sensing him, took a step away. "Sonic?"</p><p>"I should go and kill your mother right now," the hedgehog cackled.</p><p>Stunned, Dylan froze. When Sonic turned to him, there was a ruthless kind of smile mixed with rage that made his quills stand on end. He had no idea what was going on, to see someone he thought incapable of malice or rage in any degree almost trembling with hate that was trying to break from his frame.</p><p>Sonic began to once more turn away and then he grunted and began to crumble to the ground. There it was again, the something that Dylan had been wondering about. Sonic's fur had darkened, and he seemed to be sickly overcome by some negative energy, but that wasn't the primary focus of his concern. Glowing white veins of something were spreading down Sonic's neck to his chest.</p><p>As he dropped to his knees, his breath became uneven.</p><p>Dylan rushed over and tried to steady Sonic, "What did you say you were touching when you were waiting for us to catch up to you earlier?"</p><p>"Some kind of-flower," Sonic started heaving.</p><p>"It must have been poisonous!"</p><p>"That's ri-ridiculous. I've been in this jungle a lot," the dark hedgehog started to curl up on himself.</p><p>Dylan held onto him tighter and turned back, calling, "Tails! Tails quick! Bring all your medical stuff. Something's happening to Sonic!"</p><p>The distanced figure of yellow sprang up so fast, it would have been comical, except that this was dire. The white energy veins had already spread through most of Sonic's stomach and were reaching for his arms and legs.</p><p>Sonic was losing energy. Dylan laid him on his back in the grass, sitting beside him.</p><p>"It's okay. I know how to heal you. You'll be okay," even as he assured Sonic, his friend started convulsing.</p><p>Tails and Amy were then there and she gasped in horror like he'd never heard before. Tails snapped out of his shock and dropped the bag, pouring the contents out.</p><p>"Why is he turning dark?" He nervously eyed Sonic.</p><p>"Dark? What are you talking about?"</p><p>Tails talked quickly, "It's a sort of strange form he's involuntarily invoked a few times before. Happens when he's really upset about something happening or something he heard about someone he cares about. He can't help it. This just happens. Only-"</p><p>"That's not the problem," Dylan and he said at the same time.</p><p>Amy was trying not to cry and doing a lousy job of it, "What's that white stuff on his body?"</p><p>"From the scans, it's a highly poisonous venom from a jungle flower. If we don't get it out of his body, he'll be dead in a few minutes!"</p><p>Amy started wailing.</p><p>But Dylan and Tails were looking at the other, sharing the same idea. In sync, Dylan handed him the syringe and rubbing alcohol. Tails blotted a cloth with the solution and wiped Dylan's arm. They didn't speak. Then he hesitated. He still wasn't very experienced at this.</p><p>Good thing Dylan grasped the needle and placed it right above his arm, whispering, "Now, Tails. It's okay."</p><p>Encouraged, Tails knit his brow and pierced the flesh. It stung a little, but Dylan couldn't have cared less. Sonic was groaning and slipping out of consciousness. The time it took to fill the needle felt like far too long, though it was just seconds. When Tails removed it, an ethereal sparkle of golden light from the chaos powder flickered on his and Dylan's face. He was in awe, pausing to stare at the blood, and Dylan had to nudge him.</p><p>"What? Oh!" Refocusing, Tails turned to Sonic. "Hold him down."</p><p>Dylan reached for Sonic, "I'm on it." It was ironic in a bitter sense to him, that he was now holding someone down, when he'd had others do this to him-and how he hated it!</p><p>Sonic was too far gone to coherently resist, which made Tails stabbing him and thrusting all the blood into his veins easier than they both thought it would be. There was a gasp from Amy at how the chaos-infused blood spread through Sonic's body, overtaking the white poison, filling his frame with glittering gold everywhere.</p><p>As Sonic exhaled and fell limp, Tails leaned over him to check his vitals.</p><p>"He's-he'll be okay," Tails slouched, relieved and weary. "I'm guessing that even if your blood type isn't compatible for a regular blood transfusion, that he won't be harmed by that? Seeing that this is special blood."</p><p>"I think that's how it works?" Really, Dylan didn't know. They could only just assume so.</p><p>Tails was dropping the medical supplies back in his bag, "Well, I guess we'll see what happens over the next few hours. Dylan, could you carry him into the hut? We should take turns looking after him tonight."</p><p>"Of course," Dylan approached the supine form, which had once more returned to the proper cobalt color. He knew nothing about what the other two had referred to as Sonic's dark form, but that was something he intended to find out for his own protection after this was over.</p><p>He lifted Sonic up, surprised at how he'd gone from a weak lab specimen to someone strong and capable enough to carry such weight. However, self-delight wasn't proper at this time. Dylan took his friend to the hut and lay him gently down on a series of thick blankets rolled out against the wall. No one told him to leave Sonic's side, and so he stayed; first sitting next to the unconscious hedgehog, marveling at the still-present gold flickering all over him; and then he was tired, and he lay down, and then fell asleep.</p><p>~~~~~~~~~~</p><p>So, GUN was more resourceful than she'd even assumed they'd be. Come that morning, Isolena had arrived upon request to the main laboratory and before her lay five glorious gems, all different colors. Before she'd even landed at Fortress Island, the commander had sent out arms all over the globe to fetch the emeralds. Maybe in a few weeks, she'd estimated, she'd have had the five of them.</p><p>Not, literally, in one day.</p><p>Jameson was present, too, running scans over the emeralds. Almost, she wanted to laugh. Something told her this time that no wavelengths, energy, or physical properties that they could log in a computer database would reveal to them the true power of the gems, the fabled mythical chaos.</p><p>Begrudgingly, she held some respect for the jewels now. But that wouldn't stop her from using them for what she wanted.</p><p>Isolena plucked the purple emerald up and turned it about in her hand, "Mr. Cray, did GUN contact you this morning about this delivery?"</p><p>He was already holding the turquoise twin, peering at it with a magnifying glass, "Yes, a couple hours ago. Now that we have five chaos emeralds, they would like a report and a timeframe from you about how you'll be proceeding to restart Project Miracle."</p><p>Isolena eyed the other three emeralds before her, "That's fine. I'll handle it in a few hours. Have you been awake long?"</p><p>"Well, yes," the man responded, his tone surprised that she'd bother asking about such a mundane thing.</p><p>"Go sleep for a bit. There's just mechanical tasks to handle right now."</p><p>Her colleague's eyes rose as he contemplated her attention. Slightly suspicious, Jameson watched Isolena visually studying the purple chaos emerald. Regardless if he took her advice or not, she stepped over to a panel and lay the emerald on it, commencing some scans of it. No more did she pay him any attention.</p><p>That was her telling him to leave. Maybe this was the perfect opportunity for him to make contact with Shadow and Rouge. Jameson decided to take it.</p><p>He put the turquoise gem down next to the others, "Okay. I'll be back in a few hours."</p><p>She barely nodded.</p><p>Jameson stepped out and quietly walked through some of the halls. A few GUN personnel and guards passed him. Honestly, he was tired, but it was more from his guilt of association to this project than from being on his feet for hours straight. Outside was another cloudless day: blue above and blue below. Blue as far as he could see. Ominous silence, with waves licking against the steel of the compound island.</p><p>It was so lovely that he had to stop, pressing his hand to one of the glass walls that let him see everything out there. Shaking his head, Jameson resumed to his room and closed the door. Sitting, he pulled up the communicator and sent a message: they had five chaos emeralds. What was going to happen now?</p><p>No response. Sighing, Jameson rolled onto the bed and shut his eyes.</p><p>~~~~~~~~~~</p><p>Isolena waited five entire minutes after Mr. Cray had left before she placed the purple chaos emerald down and paused all the security cameras in the laboratory. Then, she pulled her phone out and tapped a button.</p><p>"I have five chaos emeralds, Eggman."</p><p>His self-indulgent laugh always bothered her, "Excellent! I guess GUN really did know where they all were. Well, this just speeds up our plan!"</p><p>A bit testy, "And that is?"</p><p>"Oh, I'll be coming to pay you a call tomorrow, Ms. Marshall. Pack your bags and get everything ready! Soon, you'll be experiencing the world from a whole new view!"</p><p>She didn't share his cackling enthusiasm, "What about the GUN agents who are certainly planning to infiltrate Fortress Island to steal the chaos emeralds?"</p><p>"I want them to try," Eggman lowered his voice. "I intend to squash Sonic once and for all tomorrow! Oh, don't worry, Ms. Marshall. I'm pretty sure my timing will be impeccable, but make sure those ants don't succeed, should they arrive before I do. Don't you dare lose those chaos emeralds or the data for Project Miracle!"</p><p>How she despised the way he threatened her, but she also didn't want this plan to fizzle out. Narrowing her eyes, Isolena assured, "Though your plans always seem to fail, I'll make sure mine don't. Just, make sure you are actually on time, if you hope to get any part of the data for Project Miracle."</p><p>As was her customary rudeness, Isolena ended the call, right as she heard as syllable burst from the doctor's mouth. Not much gave her satisfaction these days, but cutting Eggman off did sure did.</p><p>~~~~~~~~~~</p><p>Not a trace of the fire pit smoldered. No one cared. After the scare from last night, everyone had huddled in the hut to try to sleep. Honestly, no one had that well, really, except for Sonic, who slept like the dead because, well, that's what he'd almost been.</p><p>Fitfully at times. Every time Dylan gasped and opened his eyes from some movement near him, he saw that Sonic's body was still gold from his blood. But, at some point, he'd just lay down exhausted and finally succumbed to a little bit of sleep.</p><p>To the sun peaking in between slots of bamboo siding, Sonic grimaced and slowly opened his eyes. It was warm and comforting and he sighed to relax more, but he started to remember the previous night. First, he recalled what Dylan had told him, and then the searing grief and rage that had overpowered him. He'd felt nothing but maniacal glee when he'd thought of ripping that woman apart in twelve different ways.</p><p>He shuddered and rolled onto his side, and found himself facing Dylan, who appeared to be sleeping. Sonic poked Dylan's arm a little. No reaction. It was silly. The boy was as organic and real as he was, but the revelation from last night was just incredible and saddening. Being a hedgehog was a lot of fun and he'd never given any kind of thought to being anything else. When a person was born as a human or as a hedgehog or something else, that became the lens of how their world was crafted around them. Being whatever they were born as was just the most natural thing there was.</p><p>What would it feel like to suddenly be something else and to have to make a new reality?</p><p>Someone needed to help the kid with his confidence and rip him out of GUN's control once and for all. Sonic promised himself to break all the kid's shackles. Every hedgehog could only live if they were free to run! Dylan would discover how liberating it was to pound earth, to live as a free spirit, if he hadn't already felt that.</p><p>Dylan opened his eyes just then, focusing them on Sonic's green irises. The two lay facing each other in a somewhat startling moment. Dylan recovered first, scooting in closer and sitting up, at the same time rolling Sonic into his back to look him over.</p><p>"I think all the poison's gone," he spoke softly.</p><p>Sonic peered up to run his eyes over his body. There was much golden chaos powder still visible, despite hours elapsing, and he caught surprise in his throat.</p><p>Dylan explained, "I don't know if you'll be golden for a while, but that's happening because we gave you some of my blood last night. Whatever that flower was that you handled, it poisoned you. If we hadn't done what we did, you'd probably be dead right now."</p><p>"That's-that's insane," Sonic sat up and examined his arms. Fragments of gold persisted through his peach skin.</p><p>"Sonic," Dylan whispered after some seconds.</p><p>"Yeah?" The blue hedgehog was still checking himself out.</p><p>"What was that last night? You were a darker blue and you were so-"</p><p>"So, that did happen," Sonic dropped his hands atop his legs, frustrated at himself. "That's my dark form, I guess. When someone I really care about is suffering or suffered something extreme, I sort of lose all sense and I just get like that. Like, I want to avenge them, and all that darkness takes me over. The only thing I enjoy when I'm like that is violence. Usually, it takes a fake, negative energy chaos emerald to make that happen, but I guess this time it was different." He shrugged and swallowed, "Did I hurt anyone?"</p><p>Dylan was unintentionally quiet for some seconds. He was just so astonished and even blown away that Sonic, this seemingly perfect person, had darkness in him like others. Like normal people. All he'd ever presented was carefree joy. There was much more to him than he let on, Dylan realized. In a way, it was just like what Shadow did: suppress parts of himself that he felt were inconvenient or in some manner unwanted. But, was that healthy? And was suppressing his own emotional cuts a form of doing the same thing? If he-and they-didn't face those aspects of themselves, nothing positive would come of it in the end. They'd hurt themselves, but they'd also hurt those that cared for them.</p><p>He wouldn't do that anymore! He'd get past this!</p><p>Sonic was waiting on a response. Dylan darted his eyes to him and quickly spoke, "Uh-no. The poison had gone all over you at that point and you collapsed."</p><p>A chuckle, "Wow, that was perfect timing. When I go insane like that, not even Shadow can stop me."</p><p>Neither of them even cracked a smile though, as scary as the whole event had been. However, a little warm, fuzzy feeling started growing in Dylan's chest as he thought about and analyzed Sonic's words. Eventually, his eyes sort of drifted back to the hero and he felt honored by what he'd concluded.</p><p>"So, your blood completely healed me? Wow! That's absolutely incredible!"</p><p>There was that happy, go-lucky attitude again.</p><p>Dylan ignored Sonic's growing smile and asked, "Did you turn dark because you were that upset at my story? And were you that upset because you-you think of me as-"</p><p>Sonic looked directly at him, a rare serious reflection on his face, conviction to his tone, "I told you that you were my friend. I love my friends. They're my family and I'll do anything for them that I can. I mean every word of it."</p><p>Dylan believed him and all lingering doubt concerning their relationship in his mind dropped away.</p><p>It was then that Sonic's communicator flashed and he tapped it. The voice that broke the silence was Shadow, "Sonic, all of you get over here to Fortress Island immediately."</p><p>He hung up. Tails and Amy sat up upon hearing the call, to Sonic and Dylan's surprise and then half embarrassment upon realizing that the two had most likely been awake and listening to their entire conversation. The four looked one to another, as it truly dawned on them that the moment of confrontation was fast approaching.</p><p>Amy had been cuddling with Berry. When she placed him beside her, she rose and hurried over to Sonic, dropping half atop him in a sudden hug, "Oh, Sonic! Are you all okay now? You turned into your dark form last night and-I also thought you were gonna die!"</p><p>"I'm okay, Amy!" He pressed his back to the wall as she insisted to cling to him tighter. She was crying in a subdued, gentler way that brought out Sonic's affectionate side. Looking aside uncomfortably, he slid his hand on her back and rubbed up and down to help her calm down.</p><p>Tails was about gathering things up and placing them into their packs. "Amy, how's your concussion?"</p><p>"Better," she muffled against Sonic's chest.</p><p>Tails smiled. He and Dylan handled organizing everything they needed, and right on good timing, Sonic managed to take Amy up with him as he stood.</p><p>"Hurry up, you two love birds!" Tails teased, waving. "We gotta take the Tornado straight to Fortress Island!"</p><p>Everyone refocused and hurried out of the hut after Tails. Dylan carefully placed his chao back in the relative safety of his backpack before springing up in the jungle trees after his friends to run and grind back to Seaside Village. This time, the trip back was mostly silent and tense. Sonic didn't even bother to race ahead, but he stuck to Dylan's right, leaning forward to decrease his drag.</p><p>The four sprang out of the jungle back atop the warm sand but didn't even pause as they made a dash to the Tornado. Once more, Sonic took a position on one of the wings.</p><p>Dylan raised his voice, "Wait! What about Berry? I don't think he should come with us!"</p><p>Both he and Amy paused. He'd taken said chao out of his backpack and was holding him protectively.</p><p>"Berry will be okay!" Sonic shouted down. "Lock him in the beach hut. After this, someone will come get him. There's a lot of fruit we left out that he can eat. This is the safest thing we can do for him right now. There's no way he's coming with us! He'll get killed!"</p><p>The magnitude of the impending Danger churned inside of Dylan. Sonic was right. This was so sudden. Tthere was no one to look after the chao, but he would be hurt if he came along. In the least, he'd be an added burden to watch out for. So, though he loathed it, Dylan ran inside and set his friend down on the kitchen counter.</p><p>He sternly, but affectionately ordered, "Berry, stay in this house. Don't go outside. I'll come back and get you in a day or two. Can you obey me on this?"</p><p>Berry nodded, a bit confused.</p><p>Holding in a little sob, Dylan gave his chao several kisses all over his face and then he patted the little guy's head and ran out, locking the door.</p><p>"Dylan, come on!" Amy hollered.</p><p>Sucking in air, Dylan jumped up and slid in the back seat next to her. Quite delighted, she giggled a little.</p><p>"Are you sure your concussion's all better?" He asked, as she clipped their seat belt in for them both.</p><p>"Far more than good enough," came the resolute response.</p><p>Sonic smacked the wing with impatient teasing, "Let's go, Tails! We have Eggman to stop and chaos emeralds to rescue!"</p><p>"Same ol' adventure," Tails sighed, tapped a button, and lowered his goggles with a chuckle.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Fortress Island</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>At some point during their flight from the safety of Seaside Village to the bloody claws of GUN's Fortress Island, did Dylan fully realize just what was happening. His stomach churned subconsciously, fear rising in his thoughts. Everyone knew GUN, had heard of their massive military firepower, despite their stated mission of peace keeping. They succeeded in their public objective offensively at best. Since the organization's inception decades ago, a plethora of hideous secrets had leaked through the media: horrors of experimentation, nonchalance to murdering people, apathy to mercy. And there was no way GUN knew even the depths of its own corruption, so large as it was. The statement, "the left hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing," was quite accurate. Partially, GUN had grown into such a behemoth because old things just tended to grow into unhealthy obesity. But, whenever challenged on some ethical ground, GUN claimed their operational size was required, as Eggman abounded-and so did other future threats that no one knew what of.</p>
<p>What especially disturbed Dylan was the truth that even he, too, could be considered as one of their freak errors.</p>
<p>All those facts aside, despite the machines and the missiles and the aircraft that he knew would be waiting, Dylan was far more afraid of his mother. He dreaded to see her again, though as they rushed head on toward the showdown, he also missed her. Would she ever change and accept her sins? If she did, would he be able to forgive her?</p>
<p>Or, would she be able to forgive herself?</p>
<p>Her cruelty to him was still so raw, but Dylan yearned to have a mother again. Even if things would never be the same, he pained for any kind of motherly affection.</p>
<p>Then he thought about his new body and what he'd done with that golden chaos emerald only days before. Curiously, he pulled the gem out of one of their bags and held it in his lap. He'd not wanted to accept that, in some way, he was special. And, that was another problem he had to overcome-right now. The sooner he was able to stop denying his ability, the faster he could maybe be of actual use to everyone.</p>
<p>He had to try!</p>
<p>Fingering the gem, Dylan observed the shining facets. With one finger, he felt down the cut area. A sense of violent energy started to swarm inside the gem again, but he'd been expecting it. Ignoring trepidation, Dylan pressed his hand on the gem and exhaled, closing his eyes to concentrate. He didn't know much of anything about these jewels, but he knew he had some kind of connection to this specific emerald. When Shadow had flashed his red chaos emerald, Dylan hadn't felt the same kind of link to it.</p>
<p>His fingers started to sting as chaos energy snaked tendrils up to the top of the emerald, pressing against him. But he resisted, wanting strongly to take control, to make it acknowledge that he was master here. As the gem fought back, Dylan pressed his will ever stronger into it. Obey him! His fingers started to glow gold as he commanded the gem to accept him. He would put it back together!</p>
<p>There was a flash of debilitating pain all through his arms, and then it faded, and he opened his eyes to see that both of his entire hands were bathed in gold, as was the emerald. Chaos powder rose out of his fingers as well, combining his energy with that of the emerald.</p>
<p>"Whoa!" Came a surprised whisper.</p>
<p>Dylan realized Sonic was standing in front of him, like he'd done on their first plane ride. When he sought his friends' eyes, he saw that Sonic's body was also lit up with the same golden chaos powder, all through his veins where Dylan's blood had coursed through.</p>
<p>"The emerald reacting like this to you must be because you're part of it!" Sonic continued, hesitating first, then extending his right hand and placing it atop the other side of the emerald. The golden light intensified, a third layer of heavenly beauty that even Tails craned his head back to gasp at.</p>
<p>"And I'm guessing you can touch it, too, without being hurt, because you still have chaos powder in your body," Dylan added. "I wonder if the chaos powder will be permanent in you now?"</p>
<p>Sonic nodded, "The gem's really warm. How-how'd you get it to calm down?"</p>
<p>"I don't know. I just told it to obey me."</p>
<p>Amy was looking on with astonishment. Dylan flicked a smile to her and she returned it happily.</p>
<p>"Amy," he whispered before thinking, "Put your hand on the emerald, too. I promise it won't hurt. I want to test something."</p>
<p>"Are you sure?" She was apprehensive.</p>
<p>Dylan slowly nodded.</p>
<p>In a rich display of trust, Amy reached out and placed her left hand half on the emerald and half on Dylan's fingers. Some of the gold lashed out and then it fell back, looping around each of her fingers in succession. After she gasped, Amy smiled in delight at both Sonic and Dylan. It was incredible! She could touch the gem and none of that perverse energy was hurting her!</p>
<p>In fact, it was so lovely, she giggled, "It looks like gold magic!"</p>
<p>They remained like that and Sonic soberly spoke, "Say, Dylan, I'll tell you something about the chaos emeralds now. It's stupid, but I just realized no one's explained anything about them to you."</p>
<p>Amy shook her head, amused over that, removing her hand from theirs.</p>
<p>Dylan sort of had to make himself be interested. The emeralds were at the core of their current mission, but for some reason, he just didn't personally care. Was it because this was all considered mobian business among humans, and he still thought like a human? Nevertheless, he forced himself to listen keenly.</p>
<p>Sonic leaned against the back of Tails' chair, "There's a lot no one knows about the chaos emeralds. I could go on about how there used to be more than seven and they used to all be green, but that's boring. What's not boring is that we know they contain a massive amount of energy. If all seven emeralds are brought together, they can be used for good or evil. Shadow and I can use them to change into our super forms. When we do that, just about nothing can stop us. But those forms use a lot of energy, so we eventually run out and go back to normal. There's some stuff about power rings in there, but that's also a side story for some other time. After that, the emeralds usually scatter again, because they have no energy left and it takes time for them to recharge. There's been some other people who could use chaos emeralds, but not very well."</p>
<p>Dylan was sincerely listening, all the while he made circular gestures with his fingers and watched the strings of golden powder chase after his movements.</p>
<p>Sonic was continuing, "Every person has some low amount of chaos energy in their body. That's just part of the makeup of everything. But, if I have a single chaos emerald, I can use some special chaos abilities. Shadow, however, was created to channel chaos energy. He can do a lot of things without an emerald. And if he has one, he can do a lot more, like chaos control."</p>
<p>"I did read about that," Dylan commented. "His concentration of chaos energy in his body is probably higher than anything else?"</p>
<p>They were all still eyeing the beauty before them.</p>
<p>"Yeah," Sonic was thinking quite deeply. "Eggman's tried over and over again to get all the emeralds. The few times he did, nothing good came of it, because we always beat him at his game. But, as the emeralds are so old and mysterious, no one knows really how they came about. We just know that the master emerald, which is way bigger than the chaos emeralds, can bring them under control. You haven't met Knuckles. He's the guardian of the master emerald and so he spends a lot of time on Angel Island. Oh, I haven't told you about Angel Island, either, but I can do that later."</p>
<p>Dylan slowly nodded, "What about this ability I seem to have to harness this golden emerald, even despite it seeming to be unstable?"</p>
<p>"I assume it's because you make golden chaos powder!" Tails yelled back, over the whipping wind and blades.</p>
<p>Amy interjected, "It probably means you should use that chaos emerald if you can when we get to Fortress Island. Most likely, we'll end up in a fight with GUN to get the other five emeralds before Eggman does." She paused, then added, "And, since the emeralds are upset, more or less, Shadow can't use most of his chaos abilities that well. We can't assume he's reliable in that area."</p>
<p>At that thought, Dylan observed how Sonic still had his gloved hand on the emerald and, like Amy had, felt no wrath. But, unlike Amy, Sonic still looked to have all the chaos powder in his body that Dylan had injected into him the previous night.</p>
<p>An idea striking, Dylan asked, "Sonic, when you have a chaos emerald, what chaos abilities can you use?"</p>
<p>Sonic shrugged, "Chaos control. Chaos spear. A few others. Honestly, not nearly as good as Shadow, but don't ever tell him I admitted that!"</p>
<p>"Can you try one of those now?"</p>
<p>Taken aback, Sonic gasped, "What?"</p>
<p>"The emerald isn't hurting you right now. You may be able to use it in some capacity, as long as the powder's still in your body."</p>
<p>Sonic paused, then snapped his fingers, "That's a good point! Okay, but lean back then. I'll just try a little thing, in case this backfires!"</p>
<p>Dylan and Amy obediently sat back, with him keeping his hand on the emerald and keenly watching the blue hedgehog. After Sonic peered about, he turned to the side of the plane and swept his free hand toward the air. A series of golden-colored energy knives burst out of him, spinning through the air and dissipating.</p>
<p>Dylan removed his hand off the emerald, "Now try that again without me touching it."</p>
<p>Again, Sonic motioned his hand out, but this time he cringed and pressed his arm to his chest. The emerald burst with defiant rays of light and heated up until it started to turn white. Immediately, Dylan snatched it, ignoring how his fingers burned, and suppressed the emerald with his will.</p>
<p>The trio marveled in silence at the calming jewel, thinking about what they'd just witnessed.</p>
<p>Dylan conjectured, "It looks like you can use the emerald as long as I'm touching it and while you have chaos powder in your body, but it definitely looks like you can't if I'm not touching it."</p>
<p>"Yeah," Sonic chuckled. "This will probably work for Shadow, then, too; and I don't think your blood and chaos powder will be required in Shadow's case." And the blue hedgehog let off a friendly chuckle, "Shadow's special."</p>
<p>Amy pressed her hands together, "This is so great to know, though! We couldn't use the emeralds at all before, but at least we can in some manner now!"</p>
<p>Sonic scanned the clouds and slowly nodded. As he'd released the emerald, the golden streams showing under his fur faded away. He wasn't so sure, but as Amy was trying to be positive, he didn't refute her. If anything, he greatly appreciated her optimism, needed it.</p>
<p>There was a solemnity in his voice that rarely surfaced, "When we arrive, we should do what Rouge and Shadow tell us to do. I like to give orders, but I'm not up on the details of the break-in. Also, Dylan, stay with us. Don't think I'm not aware of the whole scientists wanting to harvest your blood thing. We're going to shut Project Miracle down once and for all. I don't care what the purpose of it was. It's not that anymore."</p>
<p>On they flew, in relative contemplative silence after that. Hours passed. The sun was a little past its zenith when a tiny flash of silver shimmered a way off.</p>
<p>"There's Fortress Island!" Tails pointed. "Sonic, call Shadow to see what we're supposed to do!"</p>
<p>"On it," Sonic tapped his communicator. Of course, Shadow answered and Sonic asked, "We'll be there in a few minutes. What's the plan?"</p>
<p>Shadow kept his voice low, "Land on the tarmac, as far out as you can. Rouge and I will clear the strip for you as you arrive, but you'll all need to join us immediately. After we show ourselves, we'll have to act fast: find the lab, get the chaos emeralds, and then destroy the entire building. I suspect Director Marshall will have an external backup of the project data. That was her previous tactic. We'll need to get to her to find out and, if she does, remove the data by any means."</p>
<p>"Move fast. Just my style! Got it."</p>
<p>Shadow's voice was still deadpanned, "And Sonic, Eggman may show up. Rouge told me Director Marshall has been sending him information quite regularly. Looks like it's true that she's working for him now."</p>
<p>Hearing that, Dylan's heart sank. What had his mother become?</p>
<p>"That's just typical! Well, we already knew that, what from the communications Rouge told us about," Sonic theatrically threw his arm up. "So, get the emeralds, get the data, destroy the lab, and get out of there."</p>
<p>"Yes. See you in a few minutes."</p>
<p>After the call ended, they all looked at the rather large dot before them. GUN had no doubt already discovered their approach. They were just seconds before they'd be inundated with defense projectiles. Tails was ready for evasive maneuvers, but as they approached, nothing came. No lights, no sirens. Absolute passive silence greeted them and Sonic was suspicious and baffled.</p>
<p>Now the entire base could be made out: just a massive artificial island of concrete, steel, and related materials. A long strip for takeoff. Numerous helicopters and jets sat about. At the back center stood a massive, circular complex of ten floors, the primary floor fixed around with glass windows.</p>
<p>"If they're expecting us, they certainly don't seem concerned!" Tails exclaimed.</p>
<p>Sonic met Dylan's frightened eyes and gave him a thumbs up. It didn't really help, but Amy reaching around him and hugging him to her, whispering, "We'll protect you, Dylan," made him melt a little.</p>
<p>The tarmac was in clear sight now and Tails was decelerating. No sight of Shadow or Rouge yet. Swallowing, the fox piloted the plane straight with the strip and then-</p>
<p>A red streak dashed to the center of the asphalt in less than a second, as GUN soldiers flooded out of the complex. Immediately, bullets flew. Shadow whirled and blasted them with chaos spears, wincing a little. Rouge was then by his side, punching and kicking as many soldiers as she could, dodging the ends of large rifles.</p>
<p>"Let's go!" Sonic sprung off the Tornado just as the wheels hit the earth and skidded across the pavement. It was only he, though, who ran to Shadow, spin-dashing opponents.</p>
<p>The blades of three helicopters raged above the Tornado. Tails turned the machine off and grabbed Dylan as he jumped out of it, Amy right behind them. She held a massive yellow and pink hammer that Dylan hadn't noticed before. But, being rushed across the open, vulnerable space, he didn't think about where she'd possibly been stashing it.</p>
<p>Amy shrieked, spinning, smashing automated guns aimed at them as they ran to their allies. Through it, Dylan kept the golden chaos emerald tight in his hand. His mother was looking for this one, and Shadow's red one, but she wouldn't get them.</p>
<p>"Behind you!" Sonic shouted.</p>
<p>Amy pierced the air with angry eyes, blindly spinning, crashing her hammer into bodies and more guns, sending half a dozen soldiers flying backwards. And then she continued running for where the hedgehogs and the bat were, which was near the entrance in which the soldiers had come from.</p>
<p>There were few GUN soldiers left. Shadow lunged for one of their pistols. The hot steel was a rather unnecessary weapon for him, usually, but without most chaos abilities, and as he personally enjoyed the art of the tool, he gripped it and spun, firing at any soldier still standing.</p>
<p>"Inside!" He shouted to them all.</p>
<p>No one was going to object. They were just about to shut the thick entry door, when a slow, massive earthquake caused them all to grasp at the smooth walls for support. Amy stumbled and fell against Shadow, gasping at a pistol suddenly sliding against her shoulder. He seemed nonplussed, although he did smirk at her.</p>
<p>The rumbling kept slowly intensifying. Sonic had a horrible feeling about it and attempted to run forward, "We gotta go!"</p>
<p>Shadow shoved the door switch down and the large mouth shut with a slam.</p>
<p>Obliging, everyone stumbled after him, managing some sort of coherency, though they had to continually grab or slide to the walls as they ran down the softly bending corridors.</p>
<p>"Shadow," Dylan pushed off the wall to try to get near the dark hedgehog. "I-I think you can use your chaos power if you touch this chaos emerald when I have my hands on it. So-Sonic and I tried in the Tornado, and-" He slipped, with Shadow actually catching him. "S-sorry. It worked for Sonic. So-"</p>
<p>"If that's true, I'll try it up ahead. Stay close to me," was all Shadow responded with, voice focused.</p>
<p>They all ran further and further, this time with Rouge in front. She had the best map of the fortress, having visited on some other mission. And she knew where the primary laboratory was. Huffing and straining to keep their balance, they all ran and ran and then she skidded to a stop, all of them immediately following suite.</p>
<p>She hollered, "Here it is!"</p>
<p>Yet another one of GUN's trademark style, square-shaped doors loomed above them, with the stamped imprint of a number across the front. The two sides of the door were pressed shut at a perpendicular angle, as if taunting the group to get past it.</p>
<p>"Stand aside," Shadow slid forward, grasping Dylan by the arm. "The emerald?"</p>
<p>"Wait-" Rouge protested. She hadn't heard what had been said some blocks back and so thought Shadow attempting stronger chaos abilities wasn't a good idea.</p>
<p>Dylan presented the emerald to him, despite Rouge standing nearby in abject disapproval, and with no pause, Shadow slapped his hand on it and faced his other hand to the door, gritting, "Chaos spear!"</p>
<p>The energy that he threw from his fingers felt as it should, and he was thrilled! Smug, Shadow stepped into the lab. Smoke was still clearing from the screeching destruction of the door, but it didn't take any time at all for him to make out their surroundings.</p>
<p>"Well!" Rouge placed a sassy fist on her thigh, stepping up next to her colleague. "Way to surprise a girl! It's so nice for the men to keep me in the know."</p>
<p>He only smirked at her. The others scurried in all around the two and quickly took the room in. Another rather typical GUN laboratory: square, silver tables lining two sides of the space, large monitors fastened into the walls, cabinets, and a few chairs. All stainless steel or metal. Drab, sterile, smelling like bathroom cleaning supplies. Of course, this lab was now accented by black streaks of soot and massive scrapes from the door grabbing into the walls as it was flung back.</p>
<p>And, to all of their interest, at the back of the lab, grasping onto the edge of a metal desk with one hand, was Isolena. Raging eyes glared at the intruders. As with all of them, she was also struggling to keep her footing because of the continual shaking.</p>
<p>Shadow started to step over to her first. She snarled, clutching a white mesh bag tighter to her. The five sparkling chaos emeralds within glittered.</p>
<p>Shadow evenly ordered, "Hand over the chaos emeralds and all of your data backups of Project Miracle."</p>
<p>Isolena's eyes blazed with defiance, "Never! Especially not to some disgusting creature grown on the ARK! Don't think I don't know about you-you freak hybrid!"</p>
<p>Stung, fur bristling at the back, Shadow snaked out the next words, "Then hand them over to your son, whom you tossed away for the sake of your demented, insane goals. He is your flesh and blood and the only thing you'll have in your life that's precious, after all this is over. That is, if he'll take back such scum as you."</p>
<p>The rumbling began to reduce but didn't stop entirely. At least it was low enough that they all could finally keep their balance, as Isolena also did, releasing her free hand from the desk and taking a step sideways.</p>
<p>From behind Sonic, Dylan hurried forth, and would have continued, had Shadow not grabbed his wrist with his iron hand. The woman's eyes enlarged and she seemed nearly to recoil when she saw him.</p>
<p>Dylan almost ducked away at such hate, but he couldn't do that. They were depending on him and he on them. Yet-</p>
<p>He grabbed her gaze, "Please, give us the chaos emeralds."</p>
<p>"How could you ally yourself with that weapon?" She hissed at him.</p>
<p>And Shadow grit back, "And how could you ally yourself with Eggman?"</p>
<p>Freezing, Isolena seemed surprised that they knew. But she wasn't easily intimidated and she recovered, rising to a full, prideful stance, "You were all foolish to come here, but I'm glad you did. You returned my specimen to me, and you also brought me the last two chaos emeralds. Oh, and Eggman's here, too."</p>
<p>"What?" Tails gasped. "Is that-that rumbling was-"</p>
<p>"Yes," she spat. "Why'd you think GUN didn't try to stop you from landing? GUN didn't know about Eggman, but they did want the last two emeralds, so they allowed you to arrive without opening fire on your pathetic little plane."</p>
<p>"How could you?" Amy cried out. "Eggman's only in this for himself! What do you get out of it?"</p>
<p>"A guaranteed way to get my property back," she glared at Dylan. "And to resume Project Miracle."</p>
<p>It was almost too much for Dylan. Her crazed expressions grieved him deeply. She was hurting, but had been suppressing all that pain so desperately, that she'd held onto the delusional, incorrect conclusion that all she had left was this project. She was almost a shell, miserable and only existing. However, not even his deep-felt pity for her would allow Dylan to give her any space.</p>
<p>Dylan stood up for himself and contradicted her, "I'm not a specimen and I'm not some tool for anyone to use! Whether you will ever admit it or not, I'm a person." He felt Shadow gripping his arm a little harder for emotional support, and to prevent him from running to her. Inhaling, Dylan yelled at her, "I am your son!"</p>
<p>She opened her mouth, but he cut her off.</p>
<p>"Yes, I am your son! Even-" Tears started falling. "Even if you never take me back, I'll always love you, Mom! Please, give us the chaos emeralds and just stop all this!"</p>
<p>"I have nothing left, you disgusting growth!" Her words came out choppy, betraying a possible inner fight she was starting to feel about him, about her decisions.</p>
<p>Feeling more grieved than angry at her continued verbal assault, Dylan did start to slip down. Determined hands pulled him up, pressed him back, so that Dylan found himself in the somewhat odd position of standing right behind Shadow. He noted that Shadow had pressed his red chaos emerald against his palm, while also retaining his hold on it.</p>
<p>"I've had enough of this," the deep, impatient voice rung close to his ear. "Dodge this, if you can!"</p>
<p>The second blurred and slowed. Dylan reached up, crying out against Shadow, as his protector raised his hand to release spears at his mother! He only managed to touch the tips of Shadow's fingers, and it wasn't good enough. Shadow released the volley, which then followed a sickening blast of rending metal.</p>
<p>"Shadow-how could you?" Amy reprimanded in utter shock.</p>
<p>But it had been done and couldn't be taken back. Isolena didn't say anything. She hadn't even screamed from his attack. There was a strange dignity to her actions as she tried to pick her bloody self off the floor, falling, and then attempting it again. They all froze. Her legs were shredded and dripping, pieces of skin dangling around deep, thick gashes. Likewise, her coat and clothes were ripped in numerous places. Not to mention blood was soaking through from various areas all over her body.</p>
<p>And then-a small movement of mint green caught everyone's attention. It was Dylan, weeping, running for her, finally having broken from Shadow's grip as even that hedgehog felt shocked enough at his brutality to briefly lose his thoughts.</p>
<p>Isolena was conscious enough, breathing decently well; just, her legs were giving her much grief, cut all up the most from Shadow's chaos spear. As she grit her teeth and pressed her hands on the ground, still unable to rise up any further than balancing on her knees, Dylan grabbed at her and turned her to face him.</p>
<p>"Mom-" He wept so much, his tears falling on her hands and white coat.</p>
<p>Isolena wobbled and fell on her side. Embarrassed, she lay rigid, unable to turn away from the emotions so openly displayed above her and for her. The innocent tears. The loving tears. Despite all the evil she'd done to him, the hedgehog still cared about her. It was first humbling and then repulsive.</p>
<p>No. Again, she reminded herself this wasn't her son. And to ensure she wouldn't slip again, she felt to the floor beside her where a series of instruments had fallen during the rumbling.</p>
<p>Shadow came to himself before the others, yelling, "Dylan, get away from her!"</p>
<p>Isolena almost chuckled under her breath. Ultimate life form, indeed. He was too late! Her hand found something she was familiar with, just as that freak of a project was trying to warn her specimen, and with it, she let out an angry breath and stabbed a needle into the hedgehog's side.</p>
<p>Dylan cried out and automatically grabbed at the needle, his hand falling over hers. Questioning, he turned to her. Isolena grunted and ripped the now-empty needle from him, backing to the wall to sit up. Her eyes involuntarily searched his face.</p>
<p>Dylan started to feel sick and weak. Shadow was there, grabbing at him, but he fell anyway. Trembling, he willed himself to meet her contorted face again.</p>
<p>"Mom-I-I'm sorry," he hitched with tears falling. "I just-I didn't know about Dad. At least you still had me, even if you didn't think so. Maybe it wouldn't have been the same as before, but-"</p>
<p>Grimacing, he felt weaker and Shadow sat him down carefully. It was so cold. He knew everyone was there, yet, his consciousness was starting to feel thick and oppressive. The surrounding dimness-was this bliss, even just for a few seconds?</p>
<p>Dylan tried to reach for his mother, but then his body slacked. An ejaculation of enraged voices broke up around him. Isolena could barely breathe. She reached for the form, but someone roughly wrenched her arms behind her back.</p>
<p>Shadow furiously demanded, "What did you inject into him?"</p>
<p>That blue hedgehog scooped up the entire bag of chaos emeralds she'd dropped, which had slid some steps away. She began to laugh under her breath, but even she felt no desire to gloat over anything anymore.</p>
<p>Wearily, Isolena shook her head, "He'll be dead in a few minutes, if he doesn't get a cure first."</p>
<p>"Poison?" Tails burst. "Well-where's the cure?"</p>
<p>Isolena looked away.</p>
<p>"Tell us now!" Shadow yelled at her.</p>
<p>"Or what, ultimate life form?" She mocked him. "You'll kill me? Good luck finding the cure before he dies then."</p>
<p>"You're a monster!"</p>
<p>"Shadow, no!" Amy grasped his wrist, just before Shadow slammed it down on the scientist. "This won't help Dylan!"</p>
<p>"Better hurry," Isolena added, snarky smirk on her face, despite another grimace of pain from her legs. "Eggman's on his way in."</p>
<p>Shadow egregiously growled and dropped his fist. No one had to be told again. Time was not on their side. In a blur, he, Sonic, and everyone else began searching the entire lab for the cure. It honestly marveled Isolena to observe that so many mobians cared so deeply for the dying mint green hedgehog laying in front of her. They'd sacrifice their safety for him. Right now, they all could leave and no one would pursue them. But they kept searching.</p>
<p>It made her drop her eyes down to the sweating, shaking, unconscious creature, his lashes glistening with lingering tears. The creature had survived being taken from GUN and had even seemed to be thriving. He'd shown dexterity, mobility, and energy. Definitely intelligence. He'd spoke just like her son and, hedgehog body aside, had still moved with the same mannerisms as her son. Then, he'd gifted her with words of love and forgiveness, true to the teenager she'd known.</p>
<p>Isolena hated everything. Like she needed it, needed to feel guilty right now. But the more she scoffed over such sentiment he'd spewed, the more she saw his desperate eyes in her mind and heard his desires to try to move past this nightmare and be a family again.</p>
<p>Wait: a family? She didn't have a family, because that hedgehog was not her-</p>
<p>Yes, he was. It was a truth that struck her so hard, Isolena felt her soul had ripped. That child had begged for her to give him just a glance. Just like Dylan had always done. But work had taken a higher priority. And yet, he'd never complained, and boy did she have endless memories of slighting his requests for some of her time, and she'd felt relieved when she'd escaped back to work.</p>
<p>Why? Why had she been like that? And why was she still so messed up?</p>
<p>Her mind was spinning and she couldn't stop it. His words were cutting her up worse than her legs felt. Just be a family. And he loved her. He forgave her.</p>
<p>A few tears forced through her dry eyes to her cheeks. Isolena groaned profusely and pulled a needle from her lab coat pocket. Of course, those mobians hadn't thought to look here, in the most obvious place on the entire fake island!</p>
<p>She prepped it right before them, but they only noticed and all stopped almost in unison when she pressed the tip into Dylan's body and thrust all the antidote into him.</p>
<p>"Don't look so surprised," she tossed the needle aside, groaning from more shooting pain. "It will take some hours before he's even recovered enough to be half awake. Now, we need to get to one of the GUN helicopters if we have even a delusion of escaping Eggman. None of this will matter if we don't get out."</p>
<p>Isolena gathered the boy in her arms and forced herself to her bloody feet, much to everyone's absolute surprise that she had the strength to do so.</p>
<p>"Just, what are you doing?" Sonic stupidly asked.</p>
<p>She nearly barked at him, "Saving my son! A mother's determination is very powerful. We need to go now!"</p>
<p>Everyone still doubtfully eyed her.</p>
<p>Isolena wasn't going to let anyone take him from her, so she began to walk past them. Let them do what they wanted, think what they wanted! Even she was feeling wild in her mind. All she wanted to do was go forth, go out, and get away. Then she'd have the luxury of time to spend as much of it as she needed to reflect on all of this.</p>
<p>"Let's go, guys!" Tails snapped everyone out of it. "We have the chaos emeralds! We just need to destroy everything and get out of here!"</p>
<p>"Sonic and I will handle that," Shadow spoke up. "We can do the most damage the quickest."</p>
<p>"Na-ah! Not without me!" Rouge quipped. "Don't forget that a gal like me always has explosive tricks in her pockets. Well, don't I sound like that hooligan, Bean? What's the world coming to?" With a shrug and chuckle, she pointed to the door, "Everyone else, follow the director out. We'll catch up with you in a few minutes!"</p>
<p>Nodding, the rest of them hurried after Isolena, which wasn't difficult to do, considering she couldn't achieve more than a crippling slow walk. She left multiple streams of blood behind her, but kept her mouth closed. Amy and Tails jogged up to either side of her, Amy holding her massive hammer and Tails tinkering with some odd hand-held device.</p>
<p>Yet, she said nothing; just breathed hard. They hurried on before her through the corridor for a minute or so, and then before them, a door to the right slid up and a man stepped out.</p>
<p>Immediately, he gasped at the three, "I-Isolena, what-"</p>
<p>"Shut up," she grit. "Come with us if you don't want Eggman to kill you."</p>
<p>The poor man leaned against the wall in utter confusion, running a hand over a bloody gash on his forehead, "What's happening? There was that earthquake. I fell, and I just got up. Guess I cracked my skull?"</p>
<p>"Idiot," Isolena growled.</p>
<p>Jameson took in the fox, the pink hedgehog, his boss, and Dylan, and he let out a gasp. Despite reeling a little from what was probably a nasty concussion, he rallied his mind enough to hurry after them.</p>
<p>Another round of dramatic rumbling began, causing Isolena to stumble. Amy cried out as Isolena and Dylan fell, only for Jameson to scoop the boy up away from her. Isolena grimaced, her leg contorting strangely. Struggling, she stubbornly stood but made no remark about her colleague clutching her son.</p>
<p>She just motioned and they all started for the entry door once again.</p>
<p>"Behind you!" Tails called.</p>
<p>Amy furled her brow and skidded behind them, spinning with her hammer out. Badniks galore of the lower variety were rushing for their heels, including Buzz Bombers, Spinners, and Egg Pawns. Many other familiar types accompanied the wave, with a few heavy hitters stalking in at the far back of the hostile army.</p>
<p>"Tails, go with them!" Amy yelled and the scientists resumed. She kept to the rear, clutching her hammer with decided anger. More machines, rolling and flying, swarmed up the corridor at them. To her right, when glancing outward, she was distressed to see thousands more of all shapes and sizes entrapping the entire base.</p>
<p>"Guys, hurry!" She yelled into her communicator.</p>
<p>All she got was Sonic sounding like he was in some kind of altercation, "We know, Amy! You guys get out!"</p>
<p>Nodding, she began to run after her group, yet always defending them with powerful blows of her hammer that downed every badnik in pursuit. Her head hurt some, a remnant of her concussion, but this wasn't the time to worry about that.</p>
<p>In the middle of another smash, Amy caught her breath.</p>
<p>Eggman's voice boomed through the air, "Director Marshall, don't think you can betray me! If you bring me that hedgehog and the chaos emeralds this instant, I'll let you live!"</p>
<p>"Yeah, sure," Amy huffed sarcastically and swung around to destroy four more robots at once. Since the corridor wasn't overly wide, the mechanical monstrosities couldn't overwhelm her all at once. They were forced to bump against the other, which made it easier for her to hit multiple targets in one motion, and if lucky, send an explosion cascading back through their ranks. Yet, there were too many to destroy them all-but that wasn't her aim. She was just redeeming time for Tails and the scientists to get out of the building.</p>
<p>Tails and his three charges had just about reached the door. She sprinted back for them and called out, "Tails, give me some wind!"</p>
<p>"I got it!" Tails sprung up and rotated his two tails so rapidly, that all the badniks on their trail were blown back, the first few rows smashing into each other in a rather pretty wall of flame.</p>
<p>With that, all four of them burst out onto the tarmac, right in front of an army of Eggman's robots. They should have assumed this would happen! All around and above, more and more robots were arriving, all targeting them. A shadow fell over them and they all strained their eyes upward. Several massive ships were slowly floating over, part of Eggman's Egg Fleet.</p>
<p>Isolena growled, "All this for chaos blood? What, is Eggman going to take over the world with medicine?"</p>
<p>"Don't put anything past him," Tails sighed. "More likely, he's going to use the chaos emeralds like you wanted to do! He'll get so rich off of people buying the cure, no one will be able to stop him!"</p>
<p>"Preying on peoples' desperation to live!" She spat, feeling the hypocrisy of her hate lash back at her.</p>
<p>Amy screamed and they all fell to the ground. Behind them, rushing through the earth under them, came a blast that cracked Fortress Island almost clear in half. The base blew up in the middle, shards of rubble and building flying in every direction. Then another and yet another explosion rattled their senses, followed by a stream of volleys that left them all covering their heads in fear of the onslaught.</p>
<p>Two sets of feet dropped in front of them, then a sneer and a huff, and a blue and black streak rushed forth to shred the robots pointing endless weapons at them.</p>
<p>Amy realized the cracking and breaking apart of the island were from Sonic, Rouge, and Shadow planting and detonating explosives. Only, the force of it rattled her. She worked to calm her breathing and focus on what was going on in front of her. Dylan, Ms. Marshall, and her colleague Jameson were pressed to the wall just behind her. Tails was nearby, squatting with another device-wait, that was his remote control for the Tornado. Now she knew what he was doing!</p>
<p>Determined, she rose and ran into the badnik multitude to help Sonic and Shadow, screeching in defiance as the robots tried to harm her.</p>
<p>Once she heard, "chaos spear!" and her throat caught, knowing that would cause Shadow pain. Dylan wasn't able to bless the golden chaos emerald, yet Shadow was holding his red one, anyway. But they went on and Sonic didn't once lecture her to go back. She was actually exhilarated: to be helpful, to be powerful, to contribute and not be put down for it.</p>
<p>"Shadow, would it kill you to use chaos control and get us all out of here?" Sonic shouted, spinning into another robot.</p>
<p>Shadow ripped an arm out of a robot and turned it on a slew of others, firing at them with it. "Technically, no, but close to it!"</p>
<p>"Such a bummer! We can't do that emerald thing with Dylan, since he's out right now."</p>
<p>Way to state the obvious. Shadow kept striving through, but no matter how many robots they destroyed, there were endless more. This was so frustrating, to not be able to use his chaos powers without such pain!</p>
<p>"Just get us through the robots to a GUN chopper, and I'll get the Tornado!" Tails was standing with the remote. His plane's blades had whirred to life and the small vessel was turning about on the tarmac, facing the stretch of open runway for the ocean.</p>
<p>"We need to go," Isolena stood, despite her waning energy. "Mr. Cray-now!"</p>
<p>The man bolted up with Dylan still pressed to his chest.</p>
<p>"That helicopter!" Pointing, she pulled on his sleeve and began a hobble for it, but it exploded and she stumbled to the ground. All the other helicopters blew up before her. Not one remained.</p>
<p>Eggman's voice loomed in the air again, "Badniks, bring the director, the chaos emeralds, and the green hedgehog to me! Kill everyone else!"</p>
<p>Amidst that command, Amy suddenly realized something, yelling out, "Where's Rouge?"</p>
<p>"What-she didn't come out with us?" Sonic whirled his face around. No Rouge.</p>
<p>Shadow skidded and sprung up atop more robots, "That bat! What's she up to?"</p>
<p>Sonic began to respond, "No time to worry about that-whoa!"</p>
<p>Something sprung up from the ocean, far larger than any prehistoric whale known to current science. It flung its shining, red metal body over the water and spun on its way back into the deep. One massive, metal fin splashed down on the side of the fortress, breaking massive chunks along with it.</p>
<p>"What's that thing?" Tails swallowed. The Tornado was idling on the strip and then- "No!" He cried out. For lack of a better word, the robot whale had flung its gigantic tail down and destroyed the Tornado and all the surrounding tarmac.</p>
<p>Indiscriminately, the whale bashed its body over and over again against Fortress Island, crumbling large portions of it with every ram. It was going to sink everything, and they had no way to get off, unless they jumped into the water and just tried to make a swim for it!</p>
<p>Shadow hurriedly looked around. There seemed to be no other choice than using chaos control. They had no time, no other way of escaping a watery fate. If that's what it took, then he'd have to deal with the aftereffects the best he could.</p>
<p>"Everyone, come to me!" He clenched the red chaos emerald.</p>
<p>No one had to be told. They came bashing through badniks, with Sonic keeping the rear clear enough for Jameson and Isolena, who succeeded slowly. As everyone clustered as near to Shadow as they could, and he reached out to invoke chaos control, a blue thing swooped in and snatched Dylan clear out of Jameson's arms.</p>
<p>"Dylan!" Isolena twirled in a scream, trying to see what had just flown past them.</p>
<p>"It's Metal Sonic!" Sonic clenched his hands into fists. "How're we gonna get up there?"</p>
<p>Said metal badnik was nothing but a trail of white exhaust as he flew up for one of Eggman's massive aerial ships.</p>
<p>"Change of plan," Shadow brought them all back to his attention.</p>
<p>Isolena was pale from her wounds and shaking with unbridled anger at her son being taken. "My son will not be dissected by that fool," she hissed.</p>
<p>Shadow concentrated. This was quite a few people to chaos control upward, more of a strain, which most likely meant more pain for him after. In addition, he had to try to be as precise as he could in directing them all to where he wanted them to teleport to. Focus on where Dylan was. Appearing inside a bulkhead wasn't a desirable result.</p>
<p>He sensed missiles flying through the air for where they all stood. In a flash of slow motion, with Amy starting to scream at seeing the weapons falling at them, Shadow pressed himself into the energy of the emerald and yelled, "chaos control!"</p>
<p>Red light burst and ate them up.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Face-to-Face</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Rolling, searing pain erupting through even her smallest bones, Amy gasped and pressed her arms against her chest. Something hot as fire slammed into her and seemed to bounce off. She had yet to stop sliding. When movement ceased, she lay some seconds clutching her fists just at the nape of her neck, curled up on her side and panting quite a bit. The pain wouldn't let her move at first. She had to wait for the gruesomely long time it took for it to dissipate enough for her to stiffly release her arms and legs to roll onto her back.</p>
<p>Exhaling and attempting to open her eyes, Amy was blinded by a sea of pure golden light from above. A wince and she shut her eyes. But what was this place? She was laying atop some kind of ground that was solid, ice cold, bumpy in grooves around the perfect, smooth flatness. With a dizzying headache, she peaked out again, but not straight upward this time, and tried to take in what was going on, where she was.</p>
<p>She and her friends had been trying to escape Fortress Island with Dylan and the chaos emeralds, and then Shadow had invoked chaos control, despite the pain he knew he'd suffer.</p>
<p>"Shadow!" She breathed in distress. Where?</p>
<p>With a mighty groan, she turned herself onto her stomach and slid her arms up to press them on the ground, attempting to sit up. Trembling still with pain, she succeeded, seeing then that the ground was shimmering metal, with yellow painted lines crisscrossing throughout. Blinking and shaking her head again, Amy peered around. The place was, literally, a massive room in the shape of an oval, with metallic walls that rose all around her and met in a dome at the top. No doors, windows, indentations. Just nothing. She couldn't understand how they'd arrived there or how they'd possibly get out.</p>
<p>As she scanned her surroundings, a black smudge caught her attention. Immediately, Amy turned to see what it was.</p>
<p>She gasped, "Shadow!"</p>
<p>Said hedgehog was laying on his stomach, arms up near his head, eyes closed. There was no chaos emerald with him that she could see, but Amy didn't care about that right at that second. Huffing and struggling, she made it over to him, rolling him over onto his back. Blood was leaking from his mouth, but otherwise she couldn't see that he was hurt anywhere.</p>
<p>That meant-was he damaged inside? Bleeding internally?</p>
<p>She felt tears forming. "Oh, Shadow, wake up!" Try as she might by shaking him, he didn't respond.</p>
<p>At least he was breathing, though.</p>
<p>And, where was everyone else? They'd all entered into Shadow's chaos control in one location, and so shouldn't they all have exited together? Confused, she sat next to him, absently rubbing his shoulder, feeling cold and worried for him, for Dylan, and for all the others.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>He awoke with a gasp and a shudder, and not withstanding a screaming pain shooting through him, Sonic immediately groaned and raised himself clear onto his knees. Unconscious just to his right was Isolena, a rather considerable pool of blood forming around her lashed legs. A few steps away, Tails was also lying face-first on the silver metal paneling.</p>
<p>There was no one else.</p>
<p>Sonic pressed his hands to his body and felt streaks of intermittent warmth in his chest. He looked at himself and slowly exhaled in confusion. All the golden streams of blood from the chaos powder were back, lighting him up like strings of holiday lights. Why was his body doing this? That golden chaos emerald wasn't anywhere near him. Wait-just where was it?</p>
<p>They'd had the other five chaos emeralds, and then he'd lost the bag and-</p>
<p>It dawned on him. Feeling sick and angry, Sonic wildly looked around him. The large room they were in was shaped like an egg: no doors, grooves, latches, windows, or any other indications of any way to get in or out. It was flat on the bottom, with smooth, rising walls that touched at the ceiling in the shape of the top of an egg.</p>
<p>They'd gone in with Shadow in his chaos control and been split up. Regardless if they'd all ended up landing at the same place, they'd obviously been unconscious upon arrival and Eggman had certainly taken advantage of it. Had the doctor split them up himself? If so, why'd he do it in this manner?</p>
<p>Sonic wasn't convinced of that last point. Maybe the chaos control had been harder for Shadow than the previous times he'd had to invoke it, and so they'd all been launched out in half groups in random locations.</p>
<p>At least he was sure that he, Isolena, and Tails had made it aboard the Egg Fleet.</p>
<p>Sonic felt the remaining pain from the chaos control in his body fading. He slowly rose to his feet and first checked Isolena, shaking her. She groaned and gasped, her eyes popping open. The angry sparkle was there instantly, no confusion hindering her from taking immediate action to lift herself to sit up. Sonic was a bit surprised at her fortitude, especially for a human in her condition who'd lost so much blood.</p>
<p>But she seemed okay, all things considering, so he backed up and hurried over to Tails. "Buddy, wake up!" He grabbed the fox and wrapped him up in his arms. "Hey-Tails!"</p>
<p>The boy let out a slight exhale and a groan.</p>
<p>"Tails!" Sonic softly slapped the white, furry cheek. "C'mon. Be okay!"</p>
<p>"S-Sonic?" Tails grimaced. "Where?"</p>
<p>"It's alright, Tails. It looks like some of us got split up after Shadow used chaos control. I don't know where he, Amy, or that other scientist guy is-or Dylan, but we saw Metal Sonic take him."</p>
<p>"He'll be in one of Eggman's laboratories," Isolena broke in. She grunted with excessive anger, "I'm such a fool! I thought I could outwit him and make everything work out how I wanted!"</p>
<p>Sonic had helped Tails sit up and was inspecting the child for any wounds. There was no blood, and though Tails clutched a hand on his chest, Sonic knew it was just the residual pain of the chaos energy that was fading. Satisfied, he sat down next to Tails, both of them facing Isolena.</p>
<p>Sonic tried to hide anger when he asked, "Just, what was your plan?"</p>
<p>Isolena eyed him with a lowered brow of insult. What was the point though? Things hadn't gone at all like she'd intended. Of course, her original plan wasn't what she wanted now, anyway. Therefore, there was logically no reason anymore not to tell this blue child where her thoughts had been turning. He'd tried to help her son, even though she-</p>
<p>Isolena pressed her lips tight. Her legs would soon be infected if she didn't get medical attention, but she deserved it, and, honestly, the shredded, bloody state of them currently held little concern to her.</p>
<p>Once again giving Sonic a glare, she confessed, "I was going to use the seven chaos emeralds to hasten Project Miracle along and grow tens of thousands of specimens in a fraction of the time it took to grow-"</p>
<p>Grow what: her son? That body was now his. Maybe the method in which it had come into his possession had been unwanted, but now that he lived inside of it, and he was it, she had no right to apply calloused words about it-about him-anymore.</p>
<p>She cleared her throat, "It took Richard and I a decade to grow one specimen to physical maturity. But with the knowledge and research we had this time, the process could have been replicated in a fraction of the time. However, I didn't want anyone having that hedgehog, especially after you and your friends took him away. I saw him as my property."</p>
<p>Sonic waited. When she was quiet, he probed, "There's more to it than that. You always knew that he was still your son, so why did you treat him so bad after?"</p>
<p>"After what?" She snapped defensively, then paused. Knowing just what he meant, she rubbed a sweaty palm over her eyebrows, "I couldn't let myself see him like that. Project Miracle was all I had left."</p>
<p>Even Tails was troubled, "But, isn't your son more important than any of that ever could be?"</p>
<p>Isolena chuckled, sighed, and passed Tails a sad, weary sort of amused smile, "Yes. At least a child should always trump the priority of any kind of work. I just couldn't see it at the time. You wouldn't understand the madness that overtakes a person when absolutely devastating things happen; when you've worked at something for so many years, that you feel like you were born already working on it, and then it's all taken away. All you know is that work and if it's gone, your entire life is gone. Well, I also knew that all those reasons and feelings were just convenient walls I put up so I wouldn't have to face my fears and failures."</p>
<p>None of that could justify what she'd done, though. They all three knew it, silent, eyeing each other.</p>
<p>She wasn't ignorant to the circumstances and shook her head, "What's the point of introspection right now, though? We have no chaos emeralds and no way out of this unprepossessing room. Eggman has my son, you can be sure, and will be eager to experiment on him. Since I don't seem to have my only copy of all of Project Miracle's research, Eggman must have that, too. So, hero, what would you do in this kind of situation?"</p>
<p>Sonic quirked with annoyance at her sarcastic use of the title, but he really had no idea. Only could he turn to Tails.</p>
<p>Tails could only shrug, "Like she said, I-I'd say we should look for some kind of way to get out of here, but I have no technology with me to run scans of any kind. We can only eyeball the room and check it by feeling around, I guess. But, Sonic, I feel really weak. I don't think I can get up yet. And-I was meaning to ask, why are you lit up like that right now?"</p>
<p>"I'm not sure," Sonic stood again.</p>
<p>Isolena fully looked at him now and she actually half smirked, "You got an injection of Dylan's blood, didn't you?"</p>
<p>"Well-yes-but this whole light show only started when I touched the golden chaos emerald."</p>
<p>"That must be happening because the emerald has been activated. You have a connection to it now, too, it seems, though not nearly as strong as Dylan has. Your ability could come in handy, if we could get out of here."</p>
<p>A big if. As Sonic was the only one who seemed to be well, he blurred around the room, feeling for anything he could: a slight crease, a strange bump, a crack of paneling, a shape that would infer a door of some kind. With great speed, he burst up high, pressing his fingers around the walls at the top as he slid down back to the ground. All of it was for nothing. He didn't detect a single hint of any place that would give way to an exit.</p>
<p>The three of them became silent as the reality of their situation sunk in: though they had no idea where their other friends were, or Jameson or Rouge for that matter, Dylan was the focus of their worry.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>It was a sudden jarring that awoke Dylan with a gasp of alarm, and then pain as his head dropped back atop pure hardness. When a flash of hot light passed above him, he felt a dreaded sense of déjà vu and clenched his fists. He couldn't move his arms. Fear and anger almost evenly mixed as he dared open his eyes to find out where he was.</p>
<p>A shiny blue metal robot that looked like a hedgehog was standing next to him. Despite it consisting of metal, the red eyes glared down at him so harshly that Dylan was almost convinced the machine had emotions, and that it hated him. They both locked irises. The robot kept its critical eye on him for some time, before slowly turning away and thrusting up in the air via aid of rockets on the bottom of its red shoes.</p>
<p>Dylan watched it rise high and stand atop a small red platform held up by yellow cables. There, it leaned over the edge and resumed a watchful eye on him.</p>
<p>Unsettling, but not Dylan's immediate problem. His wrists and ankles were locked again, like the first time he'd awoken in a lab, but, that's where the similarities ended. He was laying on a table in the center of a large space where, also above him, a few other robots of strange designs flew back and forth.</p>
<p>Dylan tensed, then consciously tried to calm himself down. No. This wasn't like the first time where he'd been absolutely clueless about everything. He felt fear, but he was able to keep it checked this time.</p>
<p>It was best to lay quietly and try to recall what had happened. Sonic and he and all the others had decided to break into Fortress Island to get the five chaos emeralds. A risky plan, they'd all known, but he'd ended up throwing his lot in with them. Their mission would have succeeded, had not Eggman showed up.</p>
<p>And his mother-</p>
<p>Dylan swallowed. Yes, he remembered confronting her. His heart had been on the verge of giving him physical grief when he'd raised his voice to her, but he'd resisted, and tried, and begged, and then forgiven her.</p>
<p>Did he truly forgive her? His own questioning was what brought tears to Dylan's eyes. She'd not accepted him, even in that ultimate moment where he'd sought rapprochement. She'd rejected him and injected him with something. The last memory he had was of her wild, repulsed face that he'd dared come so near to her person.</p>
<p>And now he was here. Obviously, Shadow and Sonic hadn't been able to bring their plan to a fruitful end. Maybe they'd gotten the chaos emeralds or-</p>
<p>Nope. Seven shimmering jewels rose up to his right on a table only steps away from Dylan so he could turn his head and see them. The overhead lights flickered off the jewels, illuminating the room in all directions with a psychedelic prism of colors.</p>
<p>Dylan realized he was holding his breath from how beautiful they were and he inhaled. But, the table floated away ou of sight and all their heavenly color with it.</p>
<p>He blinked and some of his resolve crumbled with tears. So much for withholding his fear. Here he was, in another lab; just a specimen, again, arguably at the mercy now of someone worse than even his mother could ever try to be. Maybe this was best. She'd been an absolutely horrible mother. Sometimes tyrannical. But still his mother. His only mother.</p>
<p>He'd just wanted her to realize that though he wasn't human anymore, he was still her son. Apparently, she'd never let go of her rage so she could start to grieve and then rebuild herself.</p>
<p>Thinking of her pain, Dylan exhaled miserably. She was tragically messed up and she'd all but murdered him for her warped goals. Yet, Dylan knew in his heart, that he still loved her. His pain was raw-it would be for a long time, but he would live past it, if he survived this current predicament.</p>
<p>Was she okay? Did his decision to forgive her make him as messed up as she? Dylan tried to stop crying, but he couldn't.</p>
<p>And a gruff sort of amused voice nearby chuckled, "Why bother shedding tears, you little lab rodent? I'm not going to kill you!"</p>
<p>That wasn't why he'd been doing so, but the voice made Dylan sweat. Even as a human, he'd seen the video feed of Eggman more than once. The voice was unforgettable; the man absolutely maniacal.</p>
<p>The garish red of material rose up at the edge of his vision and then it-the man-was there, in full form, slightly leaning over Dylan with grand smugness.</p>
<p>Arms behind his back, Eggman raised an eyebrow, "Comfortable? I doubt it, and I don't care. Your friends won't be coming for you, you know; they can't. Don't think I'm ignorant about all the mess your mother and her foolish GUN colleagues made with chaos energy when they cut into that emerald. Didn't know I knew you were her son, did you? It was easy to find that out. But, anyway, even I knew better than to do such a stupid thing a cutting up chaos emeralds! It's been done, though, so I may as well figure out how to use it to my advantage."</p>
<p>Dylan turned his head away, which amused Eggman.</p>
<p>"You're not a talker, are you? I'm more than fine with that! Sonic would never shut up. His jabbering really gets under the skin. I like you more than him, already!"</p>
<p>Not like Eggman had ever felt positively towards Sonic, and Dylan knew it.</p>
<p>The evil scientist leaned in a bit closer to him, "But, like I was saying, now that the chaos energy is just a mess, I know that Shadow and Sonic and any anyone else can't invoke all that power without murderous pain. Too bad for them!"</p>
<p>Dylan hoped his fur wasn't standing on end, as a chill snaked down his back.</p>
<p>Standing straight and chuckling even more with rising glee that started to rumble his rotund frame, Eggman added, "I thank you! It's because of you, that I've captured everyone!"</p>
<p>Dylan finally looked at him straight on and Eggman gloated further, for such was the shocked distress on the hedgehog's face.</p>
<p>"What? They all got involved, because of you. You could have come by yourself, but no! Well, it's all to my advantage! I'll finally be able to kill every single one of those idiots. And your mother, too! Silly woman. She thought she could best me, that I wouldn't have known she'd go back on our promise. Actually, it's good to be cynical and distrustful. I knew she'd betray me from the first day she agreed to my plan."</p>
<p>He snapped his fingers and a little floating robot with a dark red, round top and turquoise green eyes hurried over with a needle. The doctor snatched it with a frown of impatience at his helper and then he plucked a pair of medical gloves off the nearby tabletop and snapped them on.</p>
<p>"You'll make me richer beyond my wildest dreams! And, believe me, I have wild dreams: intergalactic domination, the roboticizing of the entire galaxy, immortality."</p>
<p>Dylan swallowed down disgust and fear, "Where are the chaos emeralds?"</p>
<p>"Out of your reach," Eggman pushed a bit on Dylan's arm and found a reasonable spot. "Just behave and lay there quietly." After swabbing the skin, he injected the needle and filled it to the top with Dylan's red and golden-ridden blood.</p>
<p>Eggman wasn't being entirely honest. Technically, the emeralds weren't within arm's reach, even if Dylan hadn't been restrained, but he could feel their energy, a thrilling and terrifying sensation for him. At least he knew they were still nearby. The very ingredients of the air were filled with raging energy that was slowly building, but it wasn't all from the emeralds. Other emotions cracked within it: anger, fear, loss, confusion, disappointment.</p>
<p>Love.</p>
<p>He closed his eyes, attempting to feel the energy clearer. Almost, he could then sense colors, personalities. Fuzzy and interconnected, but distinct characteristics rose out of the waves of chaos energy. They were calling, who or whatever they were. Their hopes tingled through Dylan's body, as comforting as it was painful.</p>
<p>But it was something he knew he couldn't ignore and so he focused harder on deciphering if it was anything he had to act upon.</p>
<p>Then, he sensed his friends nearby. Somewhere. Alas, without being able to lift himself up, Dylan couldn't decipher his surroundings further; only, that they were very nearby and in pain. Their energy pressed through the walls in all directions around him, their desires resting on him.</p>
<p>And, what was that other energy? Dylan craned to see around him, even just a little. He then spotted a small crumpled form in a white coat of sorts laying in one of the far corners, wrists shackled behind their back. They weren't moving.</p>
<p>He gasped, "Who is that?"</p>
<p>Eggman glanced at the person and then raised a brow at Dylan, "That fool that was blind and dimwitted enough to follow Director Marshall around. He popped in with you, already passed out. I haven't figured out just how I'd like to dispose of him yet, so I had him dropped there."</p>
<p>Aghast, Dylan lay his head down again. Jameson! What was wrong with him? Dylan realized it was his friends' energy he was also feeling, at least putting him at ease that the man wasn't dead. But, as Eggman wouldn't be giving him any further information, he kept his thoughts about what to do concerning Jameson to himself.</p>
<p>Dylan made himself question, "Eggman, are-are you going to sell my blood?"</p>
<p>"Do you think I could make a fortune just from you?" The man scoffed at Dylan's apparent simple-mindedness. "You're not seeing the whole picture! I have your mother's last remaining copy of all of Project Miracle's data. With it and the chaos emeralds, I'm going to do what she was supposed to do with me: grow thousands of chaos-infused mobians and collectively use them all to make me so rich, I'll be able amass planet-sized piles of wealth! Everyone will pay whatever I require, because desperate people for cures only care about living. It doesn't matter that the chaos emeralds are unstable. I'll still be able to infuse them into endless growths. And, that will enable me to build many more fortresses, improve my fleet, and then launch an all-out attack on the United Federation and GUN. Too bad your mother decided she actually cared about you! She was weak, after all."</p>
<p>The doctor might have thought he was doing nothing more but monologuing, but all he revealed caused Dylan's mind to spin with a hope, almost an idea. It was enough.</p>
<p>So far, he'd staved his fear enough to keep his mind decently clear. Just a little longer would he have to do so. Dylan focused all his mental energy on the golden chaos emerald. He wasn't sure why, or if anything he attempted would work, but it was better than lying flat in silent submission.</p>
<p>With his will, he told himself he wasn't a lab rat or some mere growth. He'd been born with a soul, as Jameson had reminded him, a soul that hadn't and couldn't be destroyed just because he'd moved from one body into another. No matter what people might think of him, Dylan would force himself to be grounded with solidarity. To be sure and to be resolute were all he had left.</p>
<p>He had to save his friends and his mother! For his entire life, he'd had to be careful lest he hurt himself: careful with his body, careful with his words to his parents. Just, delicate, afraid of bleeding out, and then afraid of being a prisoner to GUN.</p>
<p>His heart was starting to beat rapidly. He ignored it. No matter what, he'd make this work!</p>
<p>There were people on his side now. Maybe not his mother, and that was painful, but he wasn't alone anymore! Sonic, Shadow, Amy, Rouge, Tails, and Jameson. They'd all tolerated and then befriended him: a free spirit, a heavy heart, a true kindness, a determined will, an innocent brother, and a father; and he wouldn't be the weak one this time!</p>
<p>It was time to save them all, regardless of what happened to him.</p>
<p>Tingling broke out all through Dylan's body. He felt suddenly, tremendously hot, pulsing with a crazy energy he'd never felt before. Golden chaos powder visibly rose out of him, sighing like ethereal wisps of yellow smoke. Following came golden strips of light, first just a series of thin glows, and then warming into a brilliant gold.</p>
<p>"What's going on?" Eggman burst, baffled. When he attempted to approach Dylan, he cringed, hands over his eyes. "Orbot, Cubot, get over there and stop him!"</p>
<p>The two cronies ducked under the table, instead, to Eggman's audible rage. Metal Sonic jumped down and clenched his hard talons over Dylan's wrist, silently warning the organic creature to stop. Then he wrenched his hand off, his red eyes glowing in anger. Even he couldn't touch Dylan. The chaos energy seemed to mess with his systems.</p>
<p>"Please, let me help you," Dylan breathed seemingly to the air as a strange fatigue replaced the energy he'd just been feeling. Yet, his body kept bursting with gold light that rose from him, reflecting his desire to reach up for freedom.</p>
<p>Another outcry from Eggman, "Th-that's the golden chaos emerald! Where it come from? How? I had them all together in the next room!"</p>
<p>No one responded to him. Dylan felt the pulsing anger and pain of the emerald as it turned horizontally, flying slowly down towards him.</p>
<p>"Get it!" Eggman barked.</p>
<p>Metal Sonic and his two little robot henchmen attempted to grab the gem, the part of their bodies that touched it melting in a second upon impact. Seeing that, Eggman didn't dare reach for it.</p>
<p>He clenched his fists, beside himself, "This is impossible!"</p>
<p>Gliding over and down, the emerald ceased its movement once it was just above Dylan. Mesmerized, Dylan moved his fingers as much as he could to open them. As if understanding, the emerald dropped down to his hand and he gripped it firm. With a crack, all four of his restraints broke.</p>
<p>Grunting, Dylan pressed the emerald against his stomach, turning onto his side.</p>
<p>"I-I will heal you!" He half sobbed. The emerald wasn't kind to him, regardless of coming to his beckoning. White heat burned through his frame and his heart contracted, Dylan gasping and tightening further into a fetal position. With one hand on the metal table, he attempted to steady himself, vision popping.</p>
<p>"Please, feel me," he whispered, his voice seeming to echo over and over in the laboratory. He fought the gem and he half buckled, sweat breaking out over his body. All he wanted was the emerald to heal, to be in one piece again. Make this all right, so Sonic and Shadow could use their power again and save everyone. To repay their kindness, he would make it so!</p>
<p>Pushing his will into the gem, Dylan clenched his teeth. Blinding gold light burst off the emerald, engulfing them both. He kept persisting, panting, and then-he felt it! The cut slit of the blazing gemstone literally filled with missing chaos matter and the exterior of the rock turned cold and seemed to sigh through his hand.</p>
<p>Letting out a gasp, Dylan sat up straight. A new type of energy rushed through him, filling his chest. He knew, he felt that he would never again suffer a heart attack or have to deal with hemophilia. Both were gone. The emerald had given him its thanks for healing it.</p>
<p>Marveling, he held the pristine gem up before him. It was whole.</p>
<p>"Get the emerald!" Eggman burst.</p>
<p>Dylan abruptly stood as the moment focused in on him. In a whirl, he spun to face the opposite direction and threw the emerald clear up into the air, yelling, "Go!"</p>
<p>Before the entire laboratory's eyes, the emerald disappeared in a golden flash. A second of silence, then Dylan cringed and fell. Metal Sonic loomed over him, crushing his throat, awaiting his master's command.</p>
<p>Eggman pointed to a metal box in the far corner of the room, "Put him in that cage! We have to get that emerald back!"</p>
<p>It was too late. Something told Dylan that it was now just a matter of time before he'd see this place no more. Though he fell in pain from the impact of being tossed inside the enclosure, and he had no special ability to get out of the cage, he lay patiently, willing to die if that's what this entire affair required.</p>
<p>The blue metal hedgehog didn't look pleased. It squatted at the open cage door and peered back at its master. Eggman was facing away. It whipped its face back to him. Dylan tried to avoid the menacing eyes, but the robot reached in, slid him across the floor to it, and transforming its arm into a spear, shoved it through Dylan's stomach.</p>
<p>Dylan whimpered with a guttural sound of confusion.</p>
<p>The robot minion stood and closed the cage, changing the spear back into an arm and flying up to its perch, where it progressed to clean the blood off before Eggman noticed what it had done.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>Sonic sighed, trying to relax, but it was impossible! They couldn't just lay here and wait! That would just bring certain disaster. He rolled over and then he froze, feeling an all-familiar energy vibrating in his direction. Something new was mixed in with it, causing him to spring to his feet and wildly peer around. Nothing-and then a flash of yellow and-</p>
<p>"Hey, it's that gold chaos emerald!" Sonic gasped.</p>
<p>"Where'd it come from?" Tails was so surprised, he gaped.</p>
<p>The emerald wasted no time in dashing through the air in a streak right for Sonic. The blue hedgehog took a step back and then he remembered who he was and what this was, and he steeled his legs, thrusting his hand up. As the emerald came on, he slightly leaned forward. The emerald dove into his open hand. Sonic grunted, absorbing the impact enough to stay upright, his feet sliding back from the momentum.</p>
<p>"What's going on?" Isolena held a genuine face of shock that she hadn't let loose in a long time.</p>
<p>With the emerald in Sonic's hand, he immediately grabbed Tails and hurried over to her, "Looks like Dylan's surprised us again with his healing abilities. Look! The emerald's not cut anymore!"</p>
<p>Isolena could only stare in awe at it.</p>
<p>"Grab my hand!"</p>
<p>"Wh-why?" She pressed her fists to her chest.</p>
<p>"Do you want to save your son?"</p>
<p>That got her. This was all nearly too much for her but invoking her son upon her was enough. Furling her brow, Isolena defiantly grabbed Sonic's outstretched hand and he yanked her to her feet.</p>
<p>"We're going for a ride. Hold on!"</p>
<p>No need to be told; just enough seconds to gather her wits. Tails slapped his hand atop the emerald for physical contact. As Sonic wouldn't let go of the scientist's hand, he nodded and, with a smirk at how like Shadow this was, tossed the emerald up. Swiping it from the air, he yelled, "chaos control!" and the three disappeared into thin air.</p>
<p>This time, Sonic and his companions dropped out of the chaos portal just where he wanted to: wherever that place was where Shadow was. It was a dismaying and rather emotionally upsetting sight for Sonic: Amy clutching Shadow in her arms as he had been knocked unconscious and was still dripping blood from his mouth.</p>
<p>He could think about why she was clutching onto him like that later.</p>
<p>"Amy!"</p>
<p>She gasped at him and the others suddenly being there, "How-was that chaos control? What's going on?"</p>
<p>"We gotta go get Dylan and get the heck out of here!"</p>
<p>"B-but-"</p>
<p>"Everyone, gather close!"</p>
<p>Isolena was on her knees. Her legs were so weary now. But it was enough. She dropped her hand on Sonic's, with Tails and Amy following suite. And Sonic, in his position grabbed hold of Shadow's arm and again uttered the words that sent them all into oblivion.</p>
<p>Both times he invoked chaos control, his body was almost more than alive from the gold powder in his veins. And when they all exited once more, the energy lit up brighter than it ever had before. He felt Dylan and the other six chaos emeralds.</p>
<p>This place-where?</p>
<p>"Dylan!" Amy called out.</p>
<p>Sonic pivoted and saw the limp form of a mint green hedgehog laying in a cage on the floor against the far wall.</p>
<p>Then Amy screamed again and there was a terrific clashing of crumpled metal from her hammer and a badnik flew across his head and hit the wall. More came buzzing down.</p>
<p>"Not this again!" Tails grabbed Shadow and started to drag him under anything he could come across.</p>
<p>From somewhere nearby, Eggman roared out, "Robot army, get them! Now-now! Kill them all! Don't let them get away with this insolence!"</p>
<p>Sonic gasped at the blue thing plunging down right at him, "Uh oh! Haven't had the pleasure of Metal's company in a while!" Away he bolted, though there wasn't much clearance in the vast room for him, what with the constant swarms of menial badniks flying everywhere. Metal Sonic was calculating its opponent's predicted path and let fly volleys of missiles to try to stop him. Sonic squealed and sprang over one, spinning in the air, grabbing another missile and throwing it back at his metal doppelganger.</p>
<p>That wouldn't stop such a menace. So, he kept running.</p>
<p>In that flurry of fury, Tails was thinking about their new situation. Amy was bouncing around swinging her hammer quite impressively, even bashing Metal Sonic to give her hero some seconds of reprieve. Enough for-</p>
<p>"Sonic!" Tails raised his hand. "Get over here with that golden chaos emerald and put it on Shadow's chest!"</p>
<p>"Why?" Sonic did skid over, never one to doubt Tails, but he was confused.</p>
<p>Behind him, Amy spun to hit Metal Sonic again, screaming at her friends, "Whatever you're doing, do it fast!"</p>
<p>Tails rushed, "You have chaos powder from Dylan still in your body, obviously. So, if you-look, there's no time! Just do it and focus on healing him!"</p>
<p>"Don't yell at me, bud! Okay!" Sonic pressed the emerald into his sometimes-unsteady ally's chest and did his best from Tails' direction. It was amazing to him when it actually worked! All the golden medicine in his body was sucked through the emerald, and from the emerald, lit up Shadow's entire frame.</p>
<p>"My hammer!" Amy jumped for it, with Metal Sonic silently mocking her pathetic attempts. The minion flew up and then spun downward for Sonic, hammer in its fist.</p>
<p>"Gotta go fast! Hope that worked!" Sonic whipped away, just in the nick of time to avoid being pounded into a hedgehog pancake by Metal Sonic.</p>
<p>While Sonic laughed at times and narrowly dodged the robot at other intervals, Shadow stirred and slowly opened his eyes. Unlike Sonic, he didn't ask what was going on. He squarely focused on Tails, after a brief glance about his new surroundings.</p>
<p>"I don't have time to explain, Shadow," Tails shrugged. "Just that the gold emerald is better now, and the other six are somewhere really close by. You should be able to use all your abilities. You have to get them while Sonic keeps Metal distracted! You both have to get us all out of here!"</p>
<p>Only nodding, Shadow stood, with Tails steadying him. Shadow softly pushed the kitsune aside and gave him an actual small smile of appreciation. And then he concentrated his energy and opened his arms, blasting chaos energy through the entire room. Dozens of badniks exploded, but Metal Sonic had a protective shield and only glared at Shadow. But, the blast unsteadied the robot enough to drop Amy's hammer. Fists clenched, resuming its pursuit, it again reached out for Sonic.</p>
<p>"Thanks!" Amy snatched her hammer right out of the air and spun instantly, obliterating two more badniks in one swing.</p>
<p>Shadow then focused on Dylan and he skated over, easily ripping the metal side off the cage and pulling the unconscious boy out. Blood soaked his glove, to his shock. Dylan's stomach had been pierced.</p>
<p>"Dylan!" A tearing shout from Isolena rang out behind him.</p>
<p>It would be best to leave the boy with his mother, Shadow concluded. He quietly brought the child to Isolena and dropped the bundle in her lap. Her shaking arms ceased, and she clutched onto him with cemented fingers of bitter anger.</p>
<p>To that, Shadow turned and skated back to the side of the room near the bloody cage. He felt along the wall and focused his thoughts. This place was saturated with chaos energy, so that he was confident he wouldn't need an emerald to transport himself to where he needed to go. But-there was another way. A new way. The uncharted level of energy around him was unprecedented, so he stepped back, put his arm up, and concentrated fully on his task.</p>
<p>A tingle of warmth rose from the innermost part of his body to his fingers. With blinding colors of the rainbow, the six chaos emeralds flashed into the air above Shadow, circling him in perfect unison. Now it was time!</p>
<p>"Sonic!" Shadow burst upward with his treasures.</p>
<p>Sonic sprang off the wall right for him, throwing his single emerald into the mix. As soon as he entered into the circle with Shadow, both hedgehogs grabbed each other's hands. Gusts of overpowering wind blew out of them, forcing Metal Sonic back. The emeralds spun faster and faster, Sonic and Shadow absorbing their energy into their bodies, sharing their power equally.</p>
<p>Eggman, who'd been observing the action about him, decided it was time to take his leave with a push of a button on one of the tables, "It's never rude to leave the party in lieu of one's safety!" A broad circle of metal in the floor opened up to a vast, slippery tunnel. Eggman dove down the slide. Metal Sonic hovered, then bolted down the tunnel after its master. The cap slammed shut.</p>
<p>"Let's blow this place and get Eggman!" Sonic proclaimed.</p>
<p>Most likely that was more literal than he'd intended, Shadow mused.</p>
<p>"Don't forget my colleague, Mr. Cray!" Isolena pointed to the man yet laying in the corner, all but forgotten during that entire fight.</p>
<p>Sonic nodded in response.</p>
<p>The duo clenched their bodies inward and burst outward, transforming into golden versions of themselves. Playtime was over. There were no words the two needed to say. They had a link to the other that made it possible to know what they must do, and how to do it together.</p>
<p>Shadow spiraled down and scooped Amy, Isolena, and Dylan up in golden chaos spheres of protection. Likewise, Sonic fetched Tails and Jameson. Both hedgehogs blasted the entire lab into creaking, melting oblivion.</p>
<p>Then Isolena yelled, "I don't know where Eggman has my project research data! Your best bet is to destroy his central computer station, but I also don't know if he has a copy on his person."</p>
<p>"No problem!" Sonic grinned.</p>
<p>Shadow reasoned, "Sonic, we'll go together. It's best not to split up."</p>
<p>"Sure-let's go!"</p>
<p>But then, out of all times, Shadow's communicator lit up. It was Rouge!</p>
<p>Instantly, he answered.</p>
<p>"Shadow! Oh-well! You look like you're ready to pick up some girls!"</p>
<p>"What is it Rouge?" He cut her off, hiding amusement at her fluttering eyes.</p>
<p>"Hey, no need to be so snippety! I wanted to tell you all that I snuck aboard Eggman's mother ship during all that to-do on Fortress Island. Sorry for making off like a thief-couldn't help that remark-but I didn't want any of you to know where I was, just in case Eggman won. I've infected his entire computer system with a virus that will wipe everything clear. It's retroactive and will spread to his entire Egg Empire. Not just these ships. They're all connected, you see." She then seemed to inspect her gloves for any unwanted smudges, "I'm surprised! For such a self-proclaimed evil genius, you think the man would have separated his intranet systems a bit!"</p>
<p>Sonic was gleeful, "That simplifies things!"</p>
<p>"We just need to see if Eggman has a copy of Project Miracle with him, then," Shadow responded.</p>
<p>"Yes," Rouge inferred what had happened during her absence, what with the computer systems blaring red all around her. "And make sure you come pick me up. I'll be waiting on the end of the deck on Eggman's mother ship. By the way, that's where he is now. Looks like he's working up another pathetic escape."</p>
<p>She let the call go. Shadow chuckled. No matter what was going on, she always pulled through. Right now, his admiration of her was rather high.</p>
<p>"Shadow!" Amy yelled.</p>
<p>He glanced at her, embarrassed at his distraction, and eyed Sonic. In a second, the two took their companions with them and burst through wall after wall, hands before them, hurdling chaos energy as they flew. Their streaks of golden light trailed far, encompassing their precious cargo.</p>
<p>Metal Sonic had trailed after its master, so there were just average Eggman badniks that came from all directions; swarms, perhaps a complete hive. The two super hedgehogs easily bashed straight into them, not even losing a percentage of momentum. Fire from downed badniks mixed in with their golden exhaust like burning comet tails.</p>
<p>Finally, they broke through the current vessel and bolted up through the air. Below, hundreds of Eggman's red ships greeted them, all slowly flying in the same direction.</p>
<p>In that moment, Dylan stirred, to Isolena's surprise. She pressed the hedgehog closer against her and ran her hand down the side of his face.</p>
<p>"Dylan?" Her voice held a rare soft tone to it.</p>
<p>He winced, shuddered, and slowly peeled his eyes up at her.</p>
<p>"Don't move," she advised.</p>
<p>"E-Eggman-that blue metal hedgehog cut-"</p>
<p>"I know. You're bleeding badly."</p>
<p>Dylan slid his hands to his stomach, finding his mother's fingers already pressing down firmly to try to contain the bleeding.</p>
<p>"What about-about Jameson?" He struggled with the syllables.</p>
<p>She gravely nodded, "Sonic has him nearby. He'll be fine."</p>
<p>Dylan sighed. Weak as he was, he felt happier than he had in a while at her caring about his well-being. His eyes then slid past her to the fast openness of blue sky and he was confused. Turning his head, he could see a strange gold color surrounding them. Below, endless ships that made his breath catch. They were even above the clouds!</p>
<p>And what was that? Two shimmering golden forms hovered just out of arm's reach. The figures sensed his consciousness and turned in unison. The visage of his two new friends in what he knew were their super forms put Dylan in awe. He'd seen footage of the both of them like that before, majestic and unstoppable. But it was a totally different reality to have them before him!</p>
<p>Sonic swept over and stepped into the sphere, grasping Dylan's hand. "Hey, you'll make it. You have to. After all you did for us back there, we have to make sure you recover."</p>
<p>"Sonic-it worked?"</p>
<p>He nodded, "It did. Thanks, Dylan."</p>
<p>And then Shadow entered and grasped Dylan's other hand, "Yes, thank you, Dylan. The chaos emeralds are in order again, because of you."</p>
<p>Dylan was speechless. Both hedgehogs stood and gave him variations of a smile and a smirk, before they jumped out of the circle and spun in unison, diving down for Eggman's fleet. The spheres once more jerked forth and followed their masters.</p>
<p>The destruction, the sounds, the orange flame and black smoke, tossed metal, endless blaring sirens and the annihilation of ship after ship was almost too surreal for Dylan to accept that it was all real. The sounds were muffled, but the imagery wasn't. Ahead, Sonic and Shadow blasted wall after wall, uncaring of where they went or how. Ship after ship sunk with chains of kindling explosions. The two hedgehogs obliterated every computer mainframe station they found, at one point running along the deck of one of the ships and jumping off at the end for the next.</p>
<p>After a while, Eggman's badniks ceased pursuing them. Either they'd given up, or their central AI had failed, per all this destruction.</p>
<p>Up ahead, the largest, looming red and white ship was beginning to point downward. It was also on the verge of collapse, but this was the one Rouge had said Eggman had fled to.</p>
<p>Speaking of which, a small white bat was standing on the edge of the open deck, waving. Shadow blasted down and grabbed her hand at a near supersonic speed. Rouge was flung up with a gasp and found herself in a golden sphere.</p>
<p>She wasn't overly started, even quipping, "Well, I do like a speedy flight, but that was a bit too much!"</p>
<p>Shadow only chuckled under his breath.</p>
<p>"Eggman's about to get away!" The agent added.</p>
<p>On cue, a bulbous, red-shaped vessel detached from the belly of the mother ship and burst away. What a joke. Sonic streaked ahead for the small ship and grabbed it, pulling back. The entire vessel began to slow. When Shadow joined him, they grunted and shoved the ship down, forcing it to spiral through the sky for the earth.</p>
<p>"Get him out!" Sonic yelled. The two reached out for the ship, seeing Eggman on the bridge, sitting in his Eggmobile, screaming in utter terror. They barely touched the glass and it shattered into hundreds of pieces.</p>
<p>"Doc, hand over the disk!" Sonic clutched onto the metal lip of where the glass window had been, pressing his feet to the exterior.</p>
<p>"N-no! Get away!" Eggman fumbled.</p>
<p>Shadow wanted to sigh, "Doctor, your Egg Fleet is in ruins and all your computer systems are destroyed. Hand us the Project Miracle data and we'll ensure you get out of this safe."</p>
<p>"I can't trust you rodents!" Eggman gurgled. "And I'll never hand over the copy!"</p>
<p>There was no time to waste on this fat wacko. Shadow ripped Eggman clear out of the Eggmobile and threw him up above them both into nothing but transparent air. Eggman wailed and flailed, but of course Shadow caught his arm to keep him from plummeting to sure death. Perfect timing: Eggman gawked downward just as his escape ship hit the earth and blew up into a pretty orange ball of fire.</p>
<p>"You shouldn't have tried to play God," Shadow smoothly remarked.</p>
<p>To wit, Eggman bumbled, "Bl-blame that Marshall woman! Sh-she's the real psycho here! She's inhuman!"</p>
<p>Isolena gripped Dylan harder as the doctor's words ripped into her. It was true.</p>
<p>But Sonic quipped, "At least she learned from her mistakes and will become a better person for everyone, including her son! You? Never! We've waited long enough!"</p>
<p>"Hand over the data," Shadow calmly ordered again.</p>
<p>Eggman still refused, "Just drop me!"</p>
<p>"Very well," and Shadow did, crossing his arms and peering back at the stunned people in the chaos bubbles. Then, he bolted down and grabbed Eggman by the ankle, turning the man upside down.</p>
<p>"Okay! Okay!" Eggman cried out. "It's in my pocket!"</p>
<p>Sonic took great fun in checking every single one of Eggman's pockets. Even after he found the disk, he kept on, plucking Eggman's boots off, undoing his coat, accidentally dropping said articles of clothing into the air, where it all fell, most likely lost forever.</p>
<p>"You childish idiot!" Eggman shrieked. "Destroying my robots doesn't do it for you? You have to take my dignity away?"</p>
<p>No one said anything. The man was just so pathetic that it was too hilarious for words.</p>
<p>Eggman reminded, "Shadow, you said you'd let me live. I handed over the disk. Keep your word!"</p>
<p>"Of course, I will," he acknowledged. "I just didn't say where I'd drop you off."</p>
<p>"Wh-"</p>
<p>The hedgehogs flew off in sync again. They rose over mountains, dropped close over rivers, navigated through cities, turning their chore into several moments of fun. They burst up and down through puffy clouds, tossing Eggman one to the other at one point. All the while Eggman screamed and protested, everyone else just watched on in sometimes horror and sometimes amusement. After some lengthy minutes of flying over more than one continent, Sonic and Shadow came to an oasis in a desert.</p>
<p>Everyone dropped softly atop the grass. Eggman rolled onto his back, barely able to breathe.</p>
<p>His most hated blue foe, who was still currently gold, stepped over before him and shook his head, "There's a town an hour in that direction." He pointed across endless sandy hills. "Get help there. This should keep you out of trouble for at least a few days! Well, c'ya Eggman. Pleasure to whip your butt as always!"</p>
<p>The man lay on his back, "I-just get lost, Sonic. I have no strength for a rebuttal."</p>
<p>"Doctor, if I hear you trying anything like this again, I may not let you live next time," Shadow warned.</p>
<p>The flabby mad scientist frowned at him and huffed, unimpressed. He spoke not again, and so everyone turned away and the two super hedgehogs took to the skies one last time for this adventure. They flew back, passing a final time over Eggman's downed fleet, and arrived at Central City.</p>
<p>Shadow hadn't been thinking of where to go, so the influence of direction must have come from Sonic. Although, the particular thirty story apartment building they all landed atop of was subconsciously his own desire. When they set down, they both released the chaos emeralds and sent them flying off across the sky out of sight.</p>
<p>Well, all except the red emerald, which Shadow claimed as his own once more.</p>
<p>A great stillness overtook everyone.</p>
<p>Amy then gasped, "Shadow, we have to get Dylan, his mother, and that other scientist to the hospital!"</p>
<p>Right. The human woman's legs were all in bloody tatters, thanks to him; and her son was dying from an open stomach wound.</p>
<p>"I'll get Isolena," Sonic snatched her up in a flash of a second and blurred away.</p>
<p>Shadow lifted Dylan in his arms, commenting, "I'll be back for that scientist." Turning, he followed Sonic, leaving everyone standing on the roof blinking one to another.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>Well, all that fun had to come to an end, and, honestly, it had lasted just a little longer than she'd preferred. A little part of Rouge wished that they would have ended up needing to inconvenience themselves to fly out to Angel Island, but that also hadn't happened. There really was no need to pay a visit to Knuckles about this whole matter, but Rouge respected him enough to give him a proper update. And she liked the Echidna, no lie.</p>
<p>GUN would be the next item to waste time on and she wasn't enthused about it, but with her history of getting out of tight spots, Rouge wasn't particularly worried.</p>
<p>She crossed her legs, sitting in a nondescript, cheap hotel room. After everyone had scattered to and fro, Dylan in hand, Eggman's fleet a complete metal graveyard, she'd discreetly taken her leave, too. And now here she was, punching a number on her phone, smirking because she just couldn't help not to when it came to Knuckles.</p>
<p>The echidna picked up, as she knew he would, his voice holding the traditional impatient, roughness to it, "Rouge, what do you want this time? I know things are fine. The chaos energy has completely gone back to normal."</p>
<p>"I'm so glad I don't need to waste my breath explaining anything to you, then," she flirted, but inwardly wished to have more to relate so she could stay on the phone longer.</p>
<p>"So, why'd you call then? Everyone okay?"</p>
<p>"Of course, honey," she felt rather relaxed. "Including our new friend, the mint green hedgehog, Dylan. No one told you about him, I don't think, beyond that GUN was growing something in their lab?"</p>
<p>"Yeah? Wait-don't tell me he's another Shadow?"</p>
<p>To that, Rouge couldn't help but let off a chuckle, "Not in the least! The kid is just the cutest, sweetest thing you'd ever meet! Not a brooding loner and not a hot shot like Sonic. I think you'd actually like him!"</p>
<p>"Oh-what-"</p>
<p>She cut off his agitated tone, "Hey, Knuckles, if you feel any further bumps in chaos energy, it's probably okay. Dylan seems to have retained his ability to channel the sparkly stuff to heal people, if he gets his hands on something like a chaos emerald."</p>
<p>"I don't like it," Knuckles snorted. "But you're sure he's not some kind of weapon like Shadow?"</p>
<p>"Not in the least," she stood and walked over to a dingy bed, laying down with a relaxed sigh.</p>
<p>"That's fine by me, then," the guardian's voice was a bit softer. "Are-are you alright?"</p>
<p>"Me?" She let off another laugh but was inwardly quite pleased he'd asked. "I'm always fine, Knuckles, in many more ways than one."</p>
<p>He sounded like he was going to choke, "You crazy woman. You know what I mean!"</p>
<p>"Do I?" She turned onto her side and her smile spread a bit more. Knuckles was just so much fun to tease! But that was only because he was the special one she kept in a little box in her heart, along with all the jewels in her emotional treasure chamber. He was right up there with the finest diamonds in the world. "Knuckles, I gotta run now. It may be a while before you hear from me. GUN's got a funny idea to toss me in some level ten security cell. We both know that won't happen, but I have to deal with them for a bit."</p>
<p>He paused and let her see a little bit of his true feelings, "If that happened, I'd be upset. I wouldn't be able to argue with you."</p>
<p>"I doubt that! But don't worry. I'll be sure to pay you a visit after all this is done. Better watch that pretty master emerald!"</p>
<p>"Just you-"</p>
<p>Rouge ended the call, once again turning to lay on her back, phone clutched in her hand. Things would be fine. Things always were. She just disliked all this nonsense from GUN. It never paid to be a hero, and this was just another example of that. She'd helped Sonic and his cute little friends end another terrible plan by both GUN and Eggman, and all the thanks she would get would be her ex-employer raking her across the coals. That blue hedgehog could continue to play hero for all the rest of his days. The payment was just not worth it.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0015"><h2>15. Friends and Family</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Before the others were well enough to consciously focus on where they were, Jameson closed the door and turned to leave. Barely a single day had elapsed from what he couldn't refer to as anything but a fiasco at Eggman's Egg Fleet. By some miracle, no one had been killed. Just, almost.</p>
<p>He swallowed and slid his hand across the door, turning to stare blankly down the long, white corridor of medical staff and people shuffling around him with folders and clipboards and such dull things. Though his head still throbbed, he'd been cleared good to go. Not too soon, either, as the tremendous guilt he felt still had yet to subside. And, he could use a bath and a change of clothes.</p>
<p>Dylan shouldn't see him. The poor child was still in critical condition a couple floors up. Time would heal both of their bodies, but what of their souls? He felt the bandage on his head for some second dozen time and began to walk slowly for the elevator.</p>
<p>What to do now? GUN had it in for him, first; some disgraceful termination if he was lucky. Jail time if he wasn't. The atrocity he'd committed could never be forgiven. Even though Jameson took some small comfort in knowing he'd never meant to be involved in such evil, that he'd been ignorant and had truly followed Richard for the hope of a good result, that's not what had happened. Only his desire to try to tape some ripped thing together had kept him there.</p>
<p>But it wasn't good enough. Never would it be. Whatever GUN had in store for him, he'd accept it without complaint. That also meant it was better for Dylan not to see him again, lest he slip away into some punishment where no one would have access for visitation.</p>
<p>Jameson pressed the elevator button and waited. Quietly, he stepped in, went down, signed some final papers for his release from the hospital, and trudged outside into a surprisingly warm, sweet-smelling mid-morning. If not for his heavy conscious, he would have basked in the beauty.</p>
<p>Instead, he took slow and careful steps to the bottom of the stairs and headed for a bus stop. First place he'd go would be his apartment; then GUN to face the commander and most likely to be placed in cuffs under arrest.</p>
<p>He had just sat down at the stop when a figure of black and red caught his eye. Jameson looked to the right, near the stairs he'd just descended. That dark hedgehog must have just appeared there, for he hadn't seen him just a minute ago. As if to intimidate, the slightly narrowed, red eyes were pointed right at him.</p>
<p>Jameson tried not to fidget, and then he sighed with a worn smile, "Shadow, are you here to visit Dylan?"</p>
<p>Wind blew his spines a bit and Shadow dropped his arms, "You're leaving."</p>
<p>"Pardon? Oh, well, yes. I have to deal with personal and professional matters. I just had a whack to my head, after all. Nothing serious. Isolena told me what happened, so no need to catch me up."</p>
<p>"You shouldn't be leaving," Shadow's voice was stern.</p>
<p>Jameson considered the deceptively small frame of the life form and felt more tired. "I'm sorry," he wasn't sure to whom he was apologizing. "It's better for me to step out like this. Not make some scene or worry anyone."</p>
<p>"You know you're wrong," Shadow persisted. "The youth is very fond of you. If you leave, he'll worry about you."</p>
<p>"Maybe."</p>
<p>A child skipped past with their mother, smiling at the entire world. A peaceful scene, and both males waited until it was past to resume.</p>
<p>Jameson gazed out at the pretty little park the hospital had erected some years past, "Really, Shadow, Dylan is better off with good people around him."</p>
<p>"You're being preposterous," there was an uptick of annoyance now.</p>
<p>Just, why had Shadow come? Jameson examined the hedgehog, who yet kept his stoic posture. Was it really, only to see Dylan? He knew that Shadow did hold some interest in the boy, but this was rather revealing and, almost, Jameson smiled.</p>
<p>"You do feel some sympathy for Dylan. Though you're both so different, there's some similarities between you two, too. I didn't know you were so soft, Shadow."</p>
<p>Shadow only scowled at him.</p>
<p>A wave of more guilt washed over Jameson. Shadow had been through tremendous suffering all up and down the spectrum of experience. Had he been living, then or now? Did he still mourn for the past, though he'd been trying so hard to reach only for the future? Every living being could never be adequately described and understood even through a thousand tomes. That's what it meant to be alive and Jameson blinked at the living individual near him with sadness, facing the truth that people always seemed to take life for granted.</p>
<p>"Shadow, you know you're just as alive as any child that came from a womb, right?"</p>
<p>A strange question and Shadow furled his brow.</p>
<p>"The method of development doesn't matter at all. It's what comes out of it." He shrugged and scratched at his unwashed, tangled hair, "I don't know if you're aware, but I've read most of GUN'S ARK research. I know the scientists were beside themselves with fear of you, because they never acknowledged you as a sentient person. But you are. Just like me. As valuable, unique, and worthy of being loved and pined after—maybe more so than most of us."</p>
<p>"What's your point?" Shadow grit, turning halfway away.</p>
<p>"My point is that I'm acknowledging you and I'm thanking you for having an interest in Dylan."</p>
<p>More silence at first. Shadow took a step for the stairs, but he responded, "You're making a mistake to run away."</p>
<p>Jameson knew the hedgehog was right, but he just couldn't hang around to get eaten up by guilt and hope that Dylan was a sweet enough person to forgive him. Maybe at a much later date, and if he ended up free to go where he wished, he could reflect on this whole experience and take some steps to return. But just not now.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~</p>
<p>Isolena was the next person to wake and hobble up on legs completely wrapped up to the thighs in bandages. Her sheer willpower and stubbornness, with the aid of crutches, gave her energy to rise, to struggle, to make the slow trek to her son's room. A nurse insisted on accompanying her, to her annoyance, but she let it slide.</p>
<p>Finally at his door, she insisted on opening it herself and stepping in unaided. Just inside, she stopped. A black figure was standing before the broad windows at the end of the room, gazing up at flickers of clouds against an otherwise clear sky.</p>
<p>The tension almost turned palpable and the nurse happily left the room to return a little later.</p>
<p>Isolena's chest thumped with a mixture of negative reactions at seeing that artificial thing in the room. Then she reminded herself how she felt was wrong.</p>
<p>Observing the still form, she reached her son's bed and ran her eyes over him. The boy wasn't awake. Probably hadn't been yet, considering how he'd only been laying there for a day. A series of tubes ran from his body to various monitors and devices. Rudimentary things. A large bandage and monitor were attached to his middle. The cut had been severe, but she wasn't concerned he'd recover. It would only take time.</p>
<p>Her own stinging legs were just an annoyance she'd easily cope with.</p>
<p>But, that hedgehog still stood so quietly.</p>
<p>She waited a bit, before prompting, "If you have no intention to say anything, then leave."</p>
<p>Shadow turned to glare at her, but he couldn't resist a smirk. The woman and he shared quite a bit of personality similarities. She just voiced her cruelty more than he.</p>
<p>He asked, "What are you going to do with him when he recovers?"</p>
<p>Isolena resisted snarling at him, "That's none of your concern. He's my son."</p>
<p>"Up until yesterday, you denied that. In fact, you almost killed him. Twice."</p>
<p>"Wh—" She stopped herself. Of course, he—and the others—knew that she'd cut him into pieces and put him back together. And then they'd been right there when she'd poisoned him. Her own treachery disgusted her.</p>
<p>Shadow noticed every miniscule change of her expression and he softly continued, "The entirety of this situation is because of you. And you expect me to just let you take him with you so easily?"</p>
<p>"You have no right to keep him from me," she glowered. "The points you mentioned are meant to guilt-trip me, but that won't work."</p>
<p>"I don't care about your emotional state," he bit. "But I do care about how you'll treat your child when he leaves this place. Do you think he'll be psychologically stable after all you've put him through? Your level of arcane psychosis surpassed clinical insanity weeks ago. You are viler than anyone I have yet encountered in my life, and that even surprises me."</p>
<p>Isolena had to sit. She hated him just then, for he was right; and all her bravado about his words not reaching her was a front. Inside, she was churning, and though her exterior was collected, she knew that he could see right through her.</p>
<p>"I didn't know you cared for my son," she nearly sneered. "Isn't the ultimate life form above all the petty interactions of mere mortals? Don't concern yourself," she bitterly snapped.</p>
<p>Shadow stepped over to the bed and he spoke to her while facing Dylan, "I used to think like that. My mind is clear now, though. And you—I won't be a mere spectator if you harm this child. I know he will eventually, fully forgive you. There are lessons I've learned from what you call mere mortals that I could never learn on my own in a thousand years. Your son transcends the baser plane you live in. He always will and you will never be on his level. I hope you will be miserable in your own filth for the rest of your life." Suddenly, he turned to her, a dark, dangerous aura radiating from his emotions. "If not for the love Dylan somehow kept for you, I would have killed you by now. Don't think I won't be back to see him."</p>
<p>She said nothing. This must have been what the GUN scientists on the ARK felt whenever Shadow walked past them. Her fear changed more to loathing at him than anything else, as he walked to the door, a reflection of how she felt about herself.</p>
<p>The hedgehog left without another word and she sat in the hospital room thinking about many things for hours.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~</p>
<p>Once Shadow left that horrible woman's presence, he was so disturbed and so uptight from holding in what he really wanted to say, from strangling her, that he bolted away for the countryside. For over an hour, he ran without purpose or destination, just to vent his anger and deplete some energy to calm himself down.</p>
<p>It was over for him, mostly, but not for Dylan. When the boy awoke, he'd still have to deal with years of healing, and may not ever find perfect peace. After decades, Shadow hadn't. However, unlike Dylan, he'd had many years to spend pondering over a million things, trying to sort himself out, to be comfortable in his own skin. Even still, at times, Shadow felt like he'd been a sleeping soul floating out in some ether and then he'd been sucked into this hedgehog body and put through a living hell. Like this wasn't his body, but just a shell he was trapped in.</p>
<p>No doubt, Dylan would feel such similar dysphoria for a long time.</p>
<p>He slowed and stopped under a tall cherry tree, intending to drop and rest for a while. No such allowance. As soon as his communicator went off, Shadow knew who it was. Rising, he skated quickly back to the city. Chaos control was always an option, but he liked to run more than he had before. And it took just mere minutes to come to a halt in front of the thirty-story high building, and just another few minutes to rise up via elevator and step down the hall to her door.</p>
<p>Rouge was who knew where. She was in self-imposed communication blackout with everyone. Most likely GUN was looking for her. Who knew where Sonic was. The blue streak had taken off for his own release of a run a while ago, Shadow assumed. He wasn't that hedgehog's keeper. Tails was in the city somewhere. As for himself, he didn't fear GUN. They feared him, hence why he was left alone.</p>
<p>He knocked and Amy wasted no time in ripping the door open.</p>
<p>"Hi, Shadow," she was wearing that other, more body-con red dress again with the leggings and the sneakers.</p>
<p>He was busy inspecting her, while trying not to be obvious, and then he noticed her slightly ashen face.</p>
<p>"Is something bothering you?" He sincerely asked.</p>
<p>She pulled him in and locked the door, "Did you visit Dylan?"</p>
<p>"Yes. He's not awake yet."</p>
<p>"Ah," she sighed.</p>
<p>That chao Berry was fluttering about. At least Shadow had done that for her: chaos controlled to Seaside Village and brought the annoying creature back so she could take care of it while Dylan slept. Yet, this time, Shadow was less annoyed with it, finding value in the baby, as both Amy and Dylan loved it, and he felt positively about both hedgehogs.</p>
<p>Amy, though, looked downcast and understandably so, worrying about her friend. He slowly reached out and took her hand and she peered up in puzzlement at him. He said nothing, leading her to the couch to put her down, and he beside her. They'd gone through a lot in such a short period of time and he could feel that Amy had stepped up another notch in the maturity scale. Not the best way to do it, but so the world was imperfect.</p>
<p>He needed a favor, "Will you check up on Dylan regularly? I'm most likely going to have to deal with GUN for a little while."</p>
<p>"Oh, right: the whole blowing-up-their-lab thing and destroying Project Miracle thing."</p>
<p>She loved so easily. Her very slouched posture amused him. Shadow rested his hand atop hers, once more pulling Amy's eyes to him. Then he adjusted to turn more fully to her. A part of her heart still longed for Sonic, but had he been mistaken that there was something else there now, too? She'd been the one that had held him when he'd been terribly hurt from his chaos control. Then again, Amy would have shown such care for any of her friends.</p>
<p>Friends. He didn't want to stay in that place. With Amy's Sonic stalking noticeably reduced, he felt that he had every chance to test her now. Things were finished. Dylan would recover. Everyone would scatter to their places and life would go on. Some other adventure would rise up, but not today.</p>
<p>Today, right now, Shadow began to lean down over to her.</p>
<p>Amy at first was confused and she retracted, but then she stopped. Hadn't that Jameson scientist said he was alive as any natural-born, sentient being? Shadow had hidden the swelling of new self-awareness he'd begun to feel, but the man's words had realigned him more solidly and quickly than years of his own inner reflections ever could. A human, a GUN scientist had apologized and validated him.</p>
<p>Why didn't he deserve to discover if someone loved him how he wanted to be loved, then?</p>
<p>A rise of his own nerves gave him pause, but Amy hadn't said anything or moved away. She was waiting. He slid his arms around her to bring both of their bodies closer and he dropped his face to hers.</p>
<p>First, he brushed her lips and stopped, waiting a second time in case she pushed him away. There was nothing besides a small exhale from her and she inching in closer. A wonderful feeling of release and tranquility sunk down in Shadow's heart as he softly kissed her. Amy brought her arms around his neck and let herself lean in more. He adjusted a little awkwardly, this being his first kiss, and felt her back as they both tentatively tasted the other.</p>
<p>What—what was she doing?</p>
<p>With a giggle, she scooted as close as she could to him and slid her legs on both sides of him.</p>
<p>"Amy?"</p>
<p>It was okay. She reached up and kissed him again. She was so sweet and tender. He dropped his defenses and entered into her trust and love with all the true feelings in his heart he possessed.</p>
<p>~~~~~~~</p>
<p>A week more passed before the last hospital charge awoke to the empty, bland white room. He was disoriented and couldn't move and his whole body hurt from, most likely, laying in the same position for so long. However long that was. A minute after, a woman entered and started reviewing things on a clipboard and a set of monitors next to him.</p>
<p>When she noticed him blinking, she gave a little start, then recovered and smiled, "Hi, there. Can you see me?"</p>
<p>Dylan slowly blinked once at her.</p>
<p>She took that as a yes, "I'm one of the nurses looking after you. Just give yourself a few more days, and you should be able to get out of this dismal place. I'm so happy you've been recovering so well, too! Oh, you've had some visitors come by regularly."</p>
<p>"What happened?" He half croaked out, voice raspy from disuse. The memories were honestly foggy.</p>
<p>"Uhm, you came to us with a pretty big stab in your stomach." She seemed to finish her review and put the clipboard under her arm. "Well," she sort of looked aside and then back at him. "Your—your blood is very interesting."</p>
<p>Dylan knew just what she meant, and he was confused about it. If he'd healed the chaos emerald, hadn't it sucked all that powder out of his body? Why did he still make powder?</p>
<p>"If you need anything, please tap this button," she moved a small pad over to his fingers where he could reach it. "Just hold on a bit longer! You'll be back running through loop-de-loops in no time at all!"</p>
<p>And she gave him one last smile before taking her leave.</p>
<p>Dylan lay in the bed and spent a good chunk of his time thinking about what had happened and what would lay in store for him now—after he left this place. Amy came by at least once a day and gave him hugs and chatted about whatever. Berry was always with her and the chao never missed laying kisses on his face.</p>
<p>Tails visited with her often, too. The boy was always scribbling on notepads or tablets and volunteered a plethora of confusing explanations about the new Tornado blueprints and designs he was tweaking. As his precious airplane had been turned into melted metal goo, he was taking the opportunity to build another, and improved of course.</p>
<p>Sonic also sped in unannounced, always with some fun thing to describe with animated gesturing. Some run he'd been on. A new loop-de-loop. An obscure village hours away that had the best chili dogs he'd ever tasted. Wouldn't Dylan love to go running with him again? He still had a lot of speed to gain and Sonic was eager to help him with it. But most of all, the spastic blue hedgehog was concerned.</p>
<p>"Are you gonna be okay after this? Are you gonna go live with your mom?"</p>
<p>His tone held something else to it. There'd not been any discussion about where or how he'd live, not that he'd also allowed himself to ponder it. He did love his mother, and he did want to live with her again, but could he? Love, trust, and forgiveness weren't the same and he certainly didn't trust her. She'd put him through ordeals that had changed parts of him irreversibly. And her, too.</p>
<p>In fact, thinking about cohabitating under the same roof with her sent chills through him. He was afraid. Was it fear of something physical she'd try to do to him, or fear of being unloved by her?</p>
<p>"I—I don't know," was all he could give to Sonic.</p>
<p>"Hey, if you need time, you can come live with me and Tails for a while. Uh, I think that may be the best thing, too, Dylan, 'cuzz your mom's not been around since she left the hospital. That guy Jameson told me they'd both have to deal with GUN for their crimes."</p>
<p>After a bit more discussion on that topic and many others, Sonic left, his visits always ending in a quick, abrupt style.</p>
<p>And then, to his surprise, Shadow also came a few times. He'd not expected to see the silent hedgehog even once.</p>
<p>Shadow dropped his arms and came near the bed with surprising soft words of, "When you leave this place, leave it behind you. Don't dwell on it or the past but move on in good time. I'll come see you every now and then."</p>
<p>After some more days of itching and irritation and bouts of tears now and then, Dylan was allowed to sit up, and then allowed to drink fluids on his own; and after that, he proved he could eat yogurt, then oatmeal, and then more solid foods. Soon after, his stomach had healed up well enough that he was discharged, under the strict order to eat soft, simple foods for two more weeks, before reintroducing other things.</p>
<p>The moment was almost disorienting. Not one time did his mother visit while he'd been awake. All his friends had been able to affirm to him some time after Sonic's initial assumption, was that she was indeed dealing with GUN breathing down her neck. Still, that she didn't somehow make it possible to step in for even five minutes hurt. He wondered if GUN had detained her.</p>
<p>Dylan was too afraid to call her, and so he didn't; and she didn't communicate. With the offer still open, his natural choice was to go live with Sonic and Tails. It was the fox who actually had a small, two-bedroom house in a quaint, older neighborhood of trimmed and charming houses.</p>
<p>Tails let him into the somewhat stale-smelling house with an amused, "Sonic's more of a free spirit. I let him stay here whenever. How do you think I pay for the workshops and stuff, though? I don't just make things to help us stop Eggman! I have patents and copyrights on all sorts of things!" The fox rubbed his hands together with a devious grin, "Yep, the royalties just keep comin' in. Passive income, baby!"</p>
<p>He'd dropped a large binder on the table, boasting of dozens of devices from smarter vacuums to engine parts used in sports and racing cars. Dylan was truly impressed and leafed through some. And then he was tired and his stomach hurt some.</p>
<p>He was allowed to sleep in the second room, which also turned out to be where Sonic took his leisure at any given time. As he lay on one side of the bed, his friend took no umbrage in rolling over next to him and drifting off.</p>
<p>Dylan lay for a while in thought before he let himself do likewise.</p>
<p>An entire month passed under ordinary, ever-hotter suns and long days. Amy brought Berry to Dylan and the chao spent every moment with him, just as he'd done before. Dylan warmed further to Sonic and Tails, but he always wondered why his mother didn't contact him.</p>
<p>It hurt, so he occupied his time taking over Tails' kitchen, much to Amy's delight. As soon as he produced a single dozen cupcakes, she was always finding excuses to visit, to ask him to teach her how to make this or that. Even Shadow dragged along every so often, but he never talked of GUN or even hinted if he was dealing with legalities. Rouge didn't step in once.</p>
<p>Then, one early afternoon, as Dylan was scrolling through PicSnap, his ears burned. The news was on. There was a breaking announcement about Project Miracle. Everything left of the project had been dumped into public internet streams, with a spin condemning GUN of atrocious crimes against morality, trying to play God once more, and accusing them of corruption by daring to try to charge the two GUN agents with crimes for having broken into the facilities and stolen project data.</p>
<p>The news anchors went on to discuss how the information had been leaked out online and how it exposed all of his mother's and Jameson's virtues and vices, without naming them.</p>
<p>Dylan placed a stainless steel bowl on the counter and watched with glazed eyes. Director Marshall, an ex-GUN scientist who was in the midst of an investigation by GUN, had dropped this major bomb. The public had been quick to respond that GUN was in the wrong and shouldn't prosecute her or the other involved parties who'd tried to stop Project Miracle. Overall, the facts tossed so much mud all over GUN's collective reputation, that he knew public outcry would prevent Shadow, Rouge, his mother, and Jameson from seeing any jail time. It didn't matter if any of the four should have been accountable. The court of public opinion would defend them.</p>
<p>"I bet your mom had enough of GUN trying to prosecute her and the others, that's why she did this!" Tails pointed out.</p>
<p>It was a shame campaign. Neither his mother nor Jameson would walk away without their reputations completely smeared, their careers ruined, but at least they'd walk away free. As for Shadow and Rouge, those two were infinitely capable and he knew they'd easily find some other occupation together.</p>
<p>Dylan quietly finished his baking project and stepped out to sit on the back steps. In one aspect, he felt incredibly relieved. GUN should be raked across the coals for this latest breech on their part concerning all their public propaganda of keeping the peace and protecting society. Yet, he felt exposed all over again and just wanted to live as normally and privately as he could. At least he hadn't been mentioned by name in the report and the media didn't know where he lived.</p>
<p>To his relief, nothing happened over the next week. Sonic took him on daily runs, whether he wanted to go or not, which did help Dylan increase his speed. Running didn't hold the same thrill for him as it did for Sonic, but it was enjoyable enough that he really didn't mind the exercise. He secretly got far more joy out of watching Sonic laughing, spinning, and having an absolute blast than he did from his own physical exertion.</p>
<p>It was on a Saturday, with only the three of them present, as he'd just finished drying his spines and quills from a short bath, that there was a knock at the door. Dylan listened as Tails went to answer. He put his sneakers and gloves on in the back bedroom and held Berry, coming down the hall to see what was going on.</p>
<p>There was a familiar, stern voice that made him stop behind the wall at the end of the hall.</p>
<p>"Is Dylan here?"</p>
<p>Tails hesitated, "Well, yes, he is."</p>
<p>"Then may I come in? I want to talk with him."</p>
<p>Dylan didn't want to talk. Fear with the force of a wall slammed into him.</p>
<p>"Go, Berry," he whispered to his friend, pushing the chao to go sit on the top of the couch. Then, thanks to all his running practice, Dylan efficiently bolted out the back door to escape. The back yard was very small, fenced in, neat just like how Tails liked it. Dylan jumped over the fence and took off down the sidewalks for wherever. Just some blocks away, he came to a park with walking paths and children playing. There were numerous bunches of bushes and trees dotted about.</p>
<p>Dylan sought a particular close-by cluster of bushes and set himself down in a small opening inside of them, subconsciously feeling his leg. He wasn't thinking about the weeks ago when his mother had cut him, but his body remembered. And though he only had a faint scar where she'd cut his chest and put his heart in, he paused his fingers over that, too. The scar wasn't easily noticeable. His fur covered it.</p>
<p>Why was he still so pathetic? He was starting to cry and couldn't even figure out if it was simple fear of his mother, longing, or loneliness that he wanted arms around him, or something else.</p>
<p>She'd never been overly loving! Maybe he'd been starving for her to be a better mother since long before this, and all of what had happened to him had just amplified that craving.</p>
<p>He sighed at himself, wiping his eyes. What could she possibly do to him, now? Innocence had been taken from him forever. Dylan was sadly aware of how evil people could be now. His mother had shown that to him.</p>
<p>He sat in the little clearing around the bushes and calmed himself down. No more heart attacks or hemophilia. The chaos emerald had healed him permanently but had left him a heart that still pumped golden powder, therefore with blood that could still heal others. Strange. Had it done that to him as a gift for him healing it?</p>
<p>Even here, breezes tried to cheer him up. Dylan closed his eyes to relax. After some uncertain amount of time had passed, he'd sneak back to Tails' house and sleuth around to see if his mother had gone.</p>
<p>The sun was rather warm and all his fur wasn't an asset now. Summer had always been a bit sticky for him, but now it was just, well, a new and magnified experience in the department of lethargy and discomfort. He'd probably end up asking Tails for some kind of rag so he could dry himself from time to time. Didn't Sonic have to deal with this, too?</p>
<p>The perspiration would be funny, if it wasn't so wearying at this moment. And he'd just bathed, too.</p>
<p>He listened to the children and the birds, the whirling of much welcomed breezes and chiming of bicycles. After a while, he started to doze off, missing an approaching step and a rustle of bushes. When he felt a touch on his shoulder, Dylan gasped awake and sprang several steps away.</p>
<p>His mother had found him! How? How'd she know he'd come here? Tails must have told her.</p>
<p>Dylan dropped his eyes and turned his face away, taking another backward step. She stood there, looking self-composed and healthy, in solid, black leggings and knee-high, cream-toned leather boots. Her dark brown tunic fluttered around her hips from the wind, arms exposed to the shoulders. She'd recently gone to cut her hair, as it fell just to the top of her neck, thick and waving. She looked nice and he was glad to see her standing on legs once again firm.</p>
<p>Isolena took an apprehensive step and he again retreated.</p>
<p>"Dylan," came her low voice.</p>
<p>He bristled and wouldn't look at her.</p>
<p>"I came to talk to you."</p>
<p>He wanted to make some quip about that being obvious, yet still said nothing.</p>
<p>"Are you going to keep stepping away from me?"</p>
<p>Maybe. Even still, he kept his gaze on the yellow wildflowers near his feet.</p>
<p>She stopped trying to approach, "I came to see how you were doing. I did know that you'd gone to stay with your friends, but I was busy." She chuckled under her breath, "That's what I've told you for years, isn't it? Well, this time I really had to deal with GUN. They thought it would be prudent to host proceedings against me for my crimes. I don't think that will be a possibility for them, now."</p>
<p>"I saw the news," Dylan gave her that.</p>
<p>She nodded, voice still reporting statements, not at all bragging, "Yes, and I don't think GUN will be pursuing any prosecution or charges against Jameson either, or their two agents."</p>
<p>That was such a relief, that Dylan let his guard down enough to look up at her. Though there was no menacing anger, his mother held a passive expression that was hard to read. It was like looking at a piece of blank paper. There was just nothing. He was unsettled.</p>
<p>She kept an even gaze with him, "Now that I've finished that affair, I came to get you."</p>
<p>"G—get me?" Dylan automatically added more distance between them, and nearly tripped over a root, trying not to gasp as he stabilized himself on both feet.</p>
<p>She didn't even quirk a brow at him, "Yes. I've come for my son."</p>
<p>Her son. Really? With that lack of any emotion on her face? He kept his mouth shut, but reflected disbelief, speculation, offense in how he both widened his eyes and lowered his brow. Dylan felt insulted and hurt, heaving under his breath, "Since when was I your son?"</p>
<p>She responded, "You were always my son. I just—" Finally, a hitch in her voice that drew his attention. "I just didn't want to acknowledge that for a while. I'm sorry."</p>
<p>"Sorry?" He burst. "That's all I get? After—after you ripped my entire life away, my identity, my ability to defend myself? You—you threw me away for your precious science! When was I ever your son? How could anything you could ever have done have been more important than me? Why did you even have a child, if you could throw me away like that?"</p>
<p>"Dylan—"</p>
<p>He hadn't meant to burst out so, especially in a public place, but it was too late. The words burned in his mouth and he wept to the point that he had to keep wiping his eyes. Certainly, people were watching. He didn't care.</p>
<p>His voice cracked as he tried to contain himself, "For years, I hoped you'd give me some love, but you only cared about your project. I waited so long! But—" Dylan turned entirely away from her and pressed both his hands to his eyes, "You don't love me. You've only come because of obligation. Why? You already abandoned me."</p>
<p>"That's not true!" She contradicted him, more with a disapproving sort of mild anger than hurt. "You are my son! Yes, I'm not good mother material, and I probably never will be, but that's just too bad for you, because you're not getting another. You're stuck with me, Dylan. Deal with it, because I'm not letting you go!"</p>
<p>In a weird way, that was sweet. Dylan peaked back, eyes large.</p>
<p>She continued, "I can apologize all day long to you. I'm sure I'll be doing so for many months. But I don't care much for words, so I've come to get you and take you with me to Station Square so we can start over. Only time will mend some of the things between us, Dylan, but that's just the reality of our situation. Regardless, I intend to work on us even if you don't."</p>
<p>Dylan shut his mouth and wiped his eyes again. Not exactly how he wanted her to say the words, but the meaning was coming across. Yet, he was nearly trembling with phantoms of pain that just wouldn't leave him alone.</p>
<p>"You cut me apart and you put me back together in this," he put his hand on his stomach. "Do you expect me to trust you?"</p>
<p>"No."</p>
<p>He was stunned and stood there staring past her.</p>
<p>Isolena sighed and fixed her even, intimidating irises on him, "I expect you to obey me, because you're my son. I shouldn't have to tell you twice to come with me. Don't run away from me." There, she then relaxed her posture a little and managed a small, crooked frown of something close to softness, such did her tone change, "And don't hold in just what you're feeling anymore. You did that before all this, too. Don't think I didn't know; I just didn't want to deal with it. I guess that's another thing I'm sorry for. Dylan, when you're ready, tell me how you're feeling."</p>
<p>Had he heard that right? Dylan slid his arms behind his back so she wouldn't see how tightly he gripped his hands together.</p>
<p>She continued, "I'm not going to deny what I did, but I can't change it now. I can only advise, that if you don't want to live in that moment over and over again, you must learn to live with being a hedgehog now." And she again adapted a sterner tone, but this one held a slice of possessiveness almost like a warning, "But also know this: I won't ever let you forget that the human blood you inherited from your father and I is part of your genetic makeup even now. In the most biological sense, you are my son. In addition, you're my son because your father and I made that body that's now yours. So, you see, there's absolutely no way you can escape this fact that I'm your mother and I want you."</p>
<p>"But—"</p>
<p>Her face held a bit of tension now, and something else.</p>
<p>Overwhelmed, Dylan yelled, "I don't want to hear that! I want to hear that you love me! I want a mother who will hug me and help me!"</p>
<p>"Why should I say it? Dylan, I do love you, but do you believe me?"</p>
<p>Dylan did want to believe her, oh, so badly! She was right, though. He wasn't convinced she was being genuine. Like she said, words were cheap. How it hurt though! Why did he have to wait for time to bring about change? The psychological stress was almost too much for him.</p>
<p>Catching his breath, Dylan wiped his fingers over his eyes again. While he tried to slow his tears, his mother came over and dropped in front of him, pushing his hands aside with a kerchief. He felt the cloth and couldn't move, not even after she put it back in her pockets and dropped a hand on his head.</p>
<p>"Dylan," now her tone was soft, a voice he'd only heard from her in his dreams.</p>
<p>He unwillingly met her eyes again.</p>
<p>"I'll work hard to earn your trust. We'll start over. In fact, I have to find some other form of non-harmful employment, as GUN has completely destroyed my reputation. I got out with my freedom, but that was it. They'll be no more laboratories for me." She snickered ironically. "So, I'm sure we'll have a hard time at first, but I'm going to do my best. Take it or leave it. I'll be sure to prove it."</p>
<p>The woman most likely would never be the cuddling type of comforter, but she was already different in some ways. Taken in by her words, he took a little step forward. She matched his intent by bring him the rest of the way to hug him closely.</p>
<p>Dylan grabbed onto her shirt in desperate fear that she'd disappear. It was too much, and he couldn't stop sobbing. Isolena let him cry. In fact, she thrust her arms around him more securely and stood, adjusting him against her. At some other time, this would have been embarrassing, but she had to go. Their flight would be departing soon. Her son was in no mental state to deal with himself at this time.</p>
<p>He did manage to ask, "Are your legs okay?"</p>
<p>The boy was so endearing. She adjusted him closer to her and answered, "Tolerable for the rest of my life. I can walk, but I'm sure they'll hurt for a long time. It's not something I'm going to concern myself with."</p>
<p>Dylan left off talking. Almost certainly, he'd again ask about the state of her legs later on. She could walk fine and even jog some if she liked, but her legs weren't meant to be seen by the world anymore. The deep gashes, the dark scars would remain, slowly fading, but never would they leave her completely. A rough reminder of her sins, fitting for a harsh person as she.</p>
<p>Isolena turned about and stepped out, ignoring all the eyes of people who'd most likely heard quite a bit of their confrontation. Some of them had probably seen her picture on the media that day, too. So what.</p>
<p>She more firmly clutched the bundle in her arms, who was presently wetting her shirt, and she took her leave of the suburban neighborhoods. Dylan didn't manage to calm himself into an unsteady silence and mostly dry eyes until they'd stepped out of a taxi at the airport. They said nothing, but when she let him down and claimed his hand, he didn't try to remove himself from hers.</p>
<p>"I don't want you wandering off. Every time we'd go some place big, I'd turn around and end up spending an infuriating amount of time looking for you," was her official reason.</p>
<p>Dylan let her go with that supposed reason.</p>
<p>Their flight took some hours. She didn't ask him any questions about himself or his adventure or his friends, to his slight disappointment. But they would require much time to break down even little barriers. Years of her personality and years of his desire for affection couldn't just be fixed overnight. And, he reminded himself that she'd rarely even asked him about his baking hobby. It was characteristic that she didn't seem curious about his personal matters at this time, either.</p>
<p>Dylan did manage to drift off, finding himself laying across his seat and hers, head in her lap, next time he awoke. Because he moved his arm, she knew he was awake and he knew that she knew. Yet, she simply gave him a rub on his back and turned the page of whatever she was currently reading. The implied gesture of that meant so much to him, Dylan cried quietly, facing her stomach.</p>
<p>When they stepped off the plane, she was thumbing through her phone, "Our ride's here. He's probably waiting at the baggage claim."</p>
<p>As they went, Dylan felt the first pang of true interest and curiosity in what was going on. Reality was slowly settling in. His mother hadn't forgotten him. She'd come to get him. They were going to start again in their old city!</p>
<p>Still ensuring he was near her, she fetched a small piece of luggage off the belt. Dylan watched the many people hurrying about. One person was standing near the revolving doors, sporting a long, open beige coat, hands in his pockets. His eyes were already on Dylan.</p>
<p>Realizing who the man was, Dylan was overcome and he rushed through the crowd, jumping literally up to the man's open arms.</p>
<p>"Jeez!" Jameson dropped a foot back to counter the momentum. "You've been running a lot, haven't you?"</p>
<p>"I'm sorry," Dylan clung onto him.</p>
<p>"That's fine. Hedgehogs are such speedsters, the lot of you. Drop down, now."</p>
<p>He slid Dylan to the floor and dropped to a knee to be near eye level. The two took in the other, with Jameson pulling Dylan to him for a real hug.</p>
<p>"Ah, kid, I missed you a lot! I just had a bunch of drama I had to handle, like your mom did. I'm sure she told you what was going on."</p>
<p>"That's okay," Dylan pushed his face against the man's neck.</p>
<p>Isolena kept a few paces away, but even her hardened face dropped into a bittersweet smile at the two of them hugging. During the time when all of this had been unfolding, she'd been highly irritated at her ex-colleague's closeness to her son. In hindsight, she'd felt so even then because she'd known far down that he'd been giving affection to her son when she should have been, and she'd felt guilty.</p>
<p>Now, their relationship was nothing but innocent sweetness and she hoped Jameson would be a foundation in Dylan's life.</p>
<p>"Do you still like the quill treatment?" The man tugged on a spine and ran his fingers through it.</p>
<p>"Yeah," Dylan admitted, then gasped at how shamelessly honest he was about the matter.</p>
<p>Jameson got a good laugh out of the boy's discomfort and stood up, "Shall we three go? My car's just outside."</p>
<p>~~~~~~~</p>
<p>Summer sizzled by and broke with a forced crispness of leaves changing into vibrant colors. Often, Sonic ran over to visit him. Tails, sometimes, as the fox had to pilot his plane over and that took more time. Sonic's speed made it an easy joy run from one city to another. It was longer for Amy, so she came even less often. Shadow? Though it was the easiest for him to visit out of them all, what with chaos control, he was only a rare surprise at Dylan's doorstep. Rouge still hadn't visited even once.</p>
<p>All that was dandy with Dylan. He did miss his friends, but life had begun to move on; and, Dylan soon had new stress dropped into his arms.</p>
<p>When autumn arrived, he was forced to return to school.</p>
<p>Being behind on his studies wasn't a big deal. It was the different way that he was treated that was almost a culture shock for him. No one knew his backstory. All they saw was a mobian hedgehog in black, fingerless gloves and black and green sneakers. Most people were fascinated by him per nature of something about him: quills, speed, ears. Those he didn't mind. It was the surprisingly large quantity of humans that disliked mobians for no stated reason, and the few outright human bullies that gave him grief.</p>
<p>But Dylan persisted. He wasn't prideful and had no arrogant ego to protect. Maybe that was good and bad, because his mother taught introduction to geology, the study of gems and minerals, and volcanology at the high school and everyone knew it. There was ongoing questions and confusion as to how a human was a hedgehog's mother, but neither would ever reveal anything as to how such an arrangement came to be. The most accepted assumption was adoption. But, why would a human want to adopt a mobian? Those were the questions the cruel students asked, in outright repulsed, mocking tones, that Dylan had to ignore.</p>
<p>He hadn't been aware of such hate and discrimination when he'd been a human and his heart sunk that he'd been so blind. Though some mobians had moved into originally human cities and integrated into the local culture, they no doubt still experienced automatic negativity from humans. It hadn't been that long ago that even the current amount of integration around him had happened. Quite a few humans still didn't like it, feeling threatened by non-humans daring to supposedly pollute their perfect society.</p>
<p>The fact that the mobians would never be driven out of the cities angered them further. They couldn't stop a so-termed invasion of mobian filth, for the President had endorsed it and even hired some mobians into his cabinet.</p>
<p>Growing up, Dylan hadn't been exposed to many mobians and naturally his thoughts hadn't dwelt on them. Now it was different. To further widen the rift between creatures like him and humans, those that hated him applied the term "overlander" to themselves, an artificial divider of their supremacy. The term was an outdated derogatory word mobians had actually first applied against humans, during the past days of warring between the two. Now those humans had commandeered it and twisted it for their own motives.</p>
<p>To say the least, Dylan was upset by all the drama. Yet, many times he couldn't give any thought to it, for his own educational stressors insisted his attention hours and hours every day.</p>
<p>As he ended up in his mother's geology class, Dylan was first dismayed that she treated him absolutely no differently than any other student. Then he appreciated it. She was harsh on everyone equally and let every student, mobian or human, on the same level, know with the same language just what she thought when they failed.</p>
<p>And she tolerated no shenanigans or discrimination under her observation. Even the most fowl-mouthed bully cowered to her, after she slammed a metal ruler centimeters from his fingers on his desk, glaring ice daggers at him in silent disapproval. No class pranks worked on her. She seemed to know not only when there were traps and pranks lying in wait for her, but who'd come up with the idea and who all the parties were who'd been involved. Those students were expelled from her class for an entire week. If any parents dared march into the building to demand to see her, Isolena was always unimpressed serenity at first; then unimpressed savagery after, laying out the exact story just as it happened, with no flourish. Just her tone alone usually disarmed the parent. If that didn't work, her sour, bored eyes did the trick.</p>
<p>So, she was barred from any so-called real science job in some big corporation researching this or that. But it didn't mean Isolena's spirit had wasted away. In addition, she kept some tutoring room hours at the school. Overall, she was productive, a bit reclusive, and rather feared by students and faculty alike.</p>
<p>To say the least, Dylan's grades, for the first time in his life, greatly improved. His mother insisted he tell her whenever he had trouble with homework and she personally put time aside to help him with everything, whether he wanted her to or not. That was a stark difference to her barely even asking him how school was in the past. As she was a grueling tutor, he had no choice but to finish everything she demanded, and to her standards. This was, at times, embarrassing for him, when she made him go over homework with her in the public tutoring center. Explain to him what mineral cleavage was. What hardness is Talc on Mohs Hardness Scale? How could he mistake pyrite for gold, again? The four types of rock were limestone, metamorphic rock, granite, and what? He heard every little snicker from students around him.</p>
<p>But that was just one of the ways she showed her love. Dylan's pain subsided a bit, never completely disappearing, but he knew he'd be alright now.</p>
<p>Jameson also lived in Station Square. Similar to Isolena, he was also teaching, but at a middle school, adjunct: chemistry, biology, and anatomy. He visited often and took Dylan out on lovely walks, where they talked about whatever wasn't important. The man was almost like a therapist, as Dylan often poured on about innermost dreams and troubles to him. Always, Jameson listened and never judged.</p>
<p>He resumed his pursuits of baking with any free time he had. No one had known he was a human when he'd been active on PicSNap, so Dylan kept that account and started posting photos again. Amy continued to leave comments. Even Sonic and Tails did so, too! Rouge surprised him by following, and he almost choked up his food when Shadow also subscribed to his postings.</p>
<p>"Dylan, what did you bake today?" His mother now asked on regular basis. She was trying there, too, and actually gave him honest attention when he explained the details of his latest edible pursuit to her. Her interest grew when she realized baking was like a form of science. Typical.</p>
<p>The two otherwise kept rather to themselves and fall fluttered away into a bitter winter. One sunday afternoon, in the warmth of their small house, Dylan was in the middle of preparing a large batch of cupcakes when there came the chime of the front door.</p>
<p>His mother was at school, dealing with educational bureaucracy. Therefore, he wiped his hands in a hurry and blurred to the door, opening it to the happy faces of all his friends!</p>
<p>"Dylan!" Everyone exclaimed in unison.</p>
<p>He was speechless.</p>
<p>"I smell something yummy! Move aside!" Amy scurried in with everyone else right on her heels.</p>
<p>"Wait, we can have some of these, right?" Tails asked in a second of propriety.</p>
<p>Dylan tried to soften his happiness at the sudden cluster of mobians in his house, "Uh—sure! I wasn't baking them for any specific reason."</p>
<p>"Score!" Sonic snatched one of them.</p>
<p>Dylan was still standing at the door and gasped at someone sliding a finger along his front.</p>
<p>"Hi, honey," Rouge gave him a wink, politely pressing snow off her boots before she also stepped over to the kitchen counters. Dylan knew he was blushing.</p>
<p>Almost too shocking for him, Shadow was also there, and he entered after the bat. He closed the door for Dylan with a smirk, as the boy was too confounded to handle that task himself.</p>
<p>"How's your mother treating you?" He placed his maroon scarf on a nearby rack.</p>
<p>"What? Oh—very well! It's actually been really nice," he recovered sensibly enough. "Did—did you want some of the cupcakes, too?"</p>
<p>Shadow shook his head and invited himself to sit on the couch. Amy wasted no time in hopping over with two more cupcakes and snuggling up next to him. It was anyone's guess if Shadow pinkened a little, for he held in whatever he was feeling rather expertly with Amy so publicly showing him affection.</p>
<p>"Shadow, want one?" She asked him.</p>
<p>He glanced at the sugary, chocolately thing with a thick swirl of pale pink frosting and blue sprinkles and looked away. Then he grunted. Amy had dabbed the frosting on his face, smearing it across his left cheek and then his mouth. After two seconds, Shadow slowly opened his hand and Amy placed the cupcake in it. There was no use to deny the treat now. He ignored how gleefully she bit at her lip in triumph as he began to slowly eat it.</p>
<p>Dylan took himself back into the kitchen and began to make cocoa and tea. Everyone was chatting happily, smears of icing abounding, with never enough napkins.</p>
<p>"Wanna go for a run? Great weather for it!" Sonic snickered even as he asked it.</p>
<p>Dylan swallowed, "No—no thanks."</p>
<p>Everyone shared a round of hearty laughter, even with Shadow giving a slight chuckle. Dylan watched all his new friends and decided to do as much as he could to focus on the feelings of love and family they all shared with him. He'd survived so much and had started to learn to rely on others in the process. The feeling had terrified him and then exhilarated him. No one had asked for anything in return from him. Everything would be fine now that he had this new family.</p>
<p>"Photo for social media!" Amy sprang up with her phone. Everyone instantly cloistered together in the living room, all around Shadow, to his grunting disapproval. Sonic grabbed Dylan to bring him over, as well. Before Shadow could escape, Amy placed the phone on a selfie stick and snapped the photo of everyone crushing in upon the other, chocolate and frosting-smeared mouths abounding. Most of them laughed, holding up their delights in the photo.</p>
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